The Union has developed a legal and political system, the European Community, which is governed by internal operating procedures that make up a hybrid system of transnational government that combines elements close to multilateral cooperation, although strongly structured and institutionalized, with others of a clearly supranational vocation.[12] All this leads to a community of Law, whose legal and political nature is discussed, although its founding elements and its historical evolution point to a form of supranational governance with a historical-political inspiration of federal or confederal vocation (European federalism) - in the sense of a new international federalism, not of a classic federal State - which is detected in areas such as European citizenship, the principles of primacy and direct effect that are applicable to its legal system in relation to national systems, the jurisdictional system or the monetary union (the euro system).[16]​.

The EU is governed by an internal system in a regime of representative democracy framed in its seven high institutions and the rest of the community administration.[10]​ The European Council sets the broad general political guidelines, and proposes to Parliament the heads of the high constitutional institutions; the European Parliament and the Council of the Union, which exercise legislative power on equal terms;[17]​ the European Commission, which exclusively exercises the power of legislative initiative, supervises the application of Union Law, and implements community policies;[17]​ the Court of Justice, which exercises the supreme jurisdictional tasks in the community legal system—judicially applies Union Law—; the Court of Accounts that supervises and controls the proper functioning and proper administration of finances and community funds; and the European Central Bank, which directs and applies the single monetary policy of the eurozone.[10]​.

Without a clear European narrative and despite the institutional evolution that the Treaty of Lisbon entailed, the EU has had difficulties in facing the numerous crises that have arisen since the entry into force of said document: the Great Recession, the Euro Crisis, Greece's sovereign debt, conflicts with Russia over its relations with Ukraine, the unprecedented number of refugees from Ukraine, Asia and Africa, the confusion caused by the departure of the United Kingdom, the trade war, and the COVID-19 pandemic.[18]​ This situation has led to the development of a process of constitutional and institutional reform of the organization - which has gained strength since the late 2010s - in which the Scholz Government of Germany has committed to "the evolution of the EU towards a European federal State".[19]​.

The Union has developed a legal and political system, the European Community, which is governed by internal operating procedures that make up a hybrid system of transnational government that combines elements close to multilateral cooperation, although strongly structured and institutionalized, with others of a clearly supranational vocation.[12] All this leads to a community of Law, whose legal and political nature is discussed, although its founding elements and its historical evolution point to a form of supranational governance with a historical-political inspiration of federal or confederal vocation (European federalism) - in the sense of a new international federalism, not of a classic federal State - which is detected in areas such as European citizenship, the principles of primacy and direct effect that are applicable to its legal system in relation to national systems, the jurisdictional system or the monetary union (the euro system).[16]​.

The EU is governed by an internal system in a regime of representative democracy framed in its seven high institutions and the rest of the community administration.[10]​ The European Council sets the broad general political guidelines, and proposes to Parliament the heads of the high constitutional institutions; the European Parliament and the Council of the Union, which exercise legislative power on equal terms;[17]​ the European Commission, which exclusively exercises the power of legislative initiative, supervises the application of Union Law, and implements community policies;[17]​ the Court of Justice, which exercises the supreme jurisdictional tasks in the community legal system—judicially applies Union Law—; the Court of Accounts that supervises and controls the proper functioning and proper administration of finances and community funds; and the European Central Bank, which directs and applies the single monetary policy of the eurozone.[10]​.

Without a clear European narrative and despite the institutional evolution that the Treaty of Lisbon entailed, the EU has had difficulties in facing the numerous crises that have arisen since the entry into force of said document: the Great Recession, the Euro Crisis, Greece's sovereign debt, conflicts with Russia over its relations with Ukraine, the unprecedented number of refugees from Ukraine, Asia and Africa, the confusion caused by the departure of the United Kingdom, the trade war, and the COVID-19 pandemic.[18]​ This situation has led to the development of a process of constitutional and institutional reform of the organization - which has gained strength since the late 2010s - in which the Scholz Government of Germany has committed to "the evolution of the EU towards a European federal State".[19]​.