EU Voters Turn Against Established Parties : Europe: Governments in Britain, France and Spain receive sharp rebukes. Austrians OK membership by 2 to 1.

Voters in 12 nations selecting a new European Parliament turned against established parties in greater numbers than ever before and delivered sharp rebukes to ruling governments in Britain, France and Spain, according to preliminary results Sunday.

Only in Germany, where Chancellor Helmut Kohl’s Christian Democrats gave an unexpected drubbing to the main opposition Social Democrats, did a major ruling party achieve a real victory.

As counting continued early today, the strong showing of Britain’s Labor Party seemed to be enough to enable socialist-leaning parties to remain the largest single grouping in the 567-seat Parliament.

The Parliament, which acts as the legislative arm of the 12-nation European Union, is not as strong as national assemblies. But it recently gained new powers, including veto rights on key EU appointments and a degree of control on issues such as education, the environment and consumer affairs.

But with European issues often confusing and the Parliament itself a remote body, turnouts were generally low, frequently below 50%.

“The absenteeism is worrying,” said Jacques Delors, president of the EU’s Executive Commission. “There can only be a (united) Europe if people show an interest in it.”

The Austrians seemed to have that enthusiasm, as voters participating in a national referendum accepted, by more than a surprising 2-1 margin, the terms of entry into the EU next January.

Austria’s ringing endorsement of EU membership is likely to brighten the chances that similar referendums will pass in Finland, Sweden and Norway later this year.

Nations voting Sunday were Belgium, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Luxembourg, Portugal and Spain. Britain, Ireland, Denmark and the Netherlands voted Thursday. Final results are expected today.

In most countries, the voting was a barometer of national government popularity.

In Spain, where a series of scandals has rocked the government in recent months, Prime Minister Felipe Gonzalez’s ruling Socialists were headed for defeat for the first time since he rose to leadership 12 years ago, trailing the conservative Popular Party by 40% to 30%.

In Britain, where Prime Minister John Major’s Conservative government has lurched from crisis to crisis, the opposition Labor Party was on its way to taking about 60 of Britain’s 87 European seats.

Such a victory would give Labor the largest contingent of seats from any national party and would keep the assembly’s socialist group as the largest voting bloc.

Italian voters once again rejected the traditional mainstream parties, giving an endorsement to Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.

“This has shown that (voters) want to judge politicians not by labels but by the nature of their actions,” Berlusconi said.

Only in Germany was the picture different.

With computer projections showing Kohl’s ruling coalition winning 48 of Germany’s 99 seats in the new Parliament--and with the Christian Democrats also doing unexpectedly well in local elections held in five German states Sunday--the chancellor seemed on course to once again defy the country’s political pundits. Almost universally, they had written off his bid for an unprecedented fourth term as chancellor next October.

In France, the mainstream conservatives lost strength while the Socialists slipped below 15%.

Ultra-right parties did well in Belgium, but they fared poorly elsewhere. Germany’s extreme-right-wing Republicans disappeared from the Parliament completely, unable to muster the necessary 5%.