As 350 million eligible voters across the European Union head to the polls, early projections indicate significant gains for conservative and rightwing parties, with notable leads in Austria, Germany, and the Netherlands.

350 million people across the European Union are eligible to cast their vote in this year's election, with a total of 720 parliamentary seats up for grabs. Results are expected late on Sunday evening, with countries like Italy only ending their vote as late as 11pm.

First projections show conservative and rightwing gains across the continent. In Austria, the Freedom Party of Austria is in the lead with 27%, according to national broadcaster ORF, which would double their seats from three to six.

In Germany, the CDU/CSU is ahead with 30% and on course to secure 29 seats, according to broadcaster ARD. This bodes well for Ursula von der Leyen, the lead candidate of the European People's Party (EPP). Rightwing party AfD is projected to get 16.5%, putting them ahead of Chancellor Scholz' SPD as well as The Greens, and increasing their seat tally from eleven to 17.

Geert Wilders looks poised to once again finish as the major winner of a Dutch election, with his party projected to increase their seats from one to seven. Nevertheless, two thirds of voters in the Netherlands are expected to cast a pro-European vote amid the highest voter turnout (47%) in 35 years.

In Hungary, the European elections are seen as a referendum on the leadership of Prime Minister Viktor Orban and his Fidesz party. The Hungarian head of state has in recent years often been shunned by Western Europe for his pro-Russian stance and his anti-immigration policies. Fidesz, in power since 2010, is widely expected to gain the most votes.

French President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday announced he was dissolving parliament and called snap legislative elections after the far-right trounced his centrist alliance in EU polls.The 'Rassemblement national' is far ahead with 32,4%.

The outcome of the EU elections, Macron acknowledged, is "not a good result for parties who defend Europe." Macron noted that, including the top scoring National Rally (RN), far-right parties in France managed to take almost 40 percent of the vote in the EU elections in France.

Video report in Luxembourgish