Exploring public opinion and support for compliance with EU values with Eurobarometer data

Do publics support compliance with EU values? Shifting the focus from political elites to citizens, this paper draws on Eurobarometer data from 2019 to 2025 to examine public support for compliance across the EU-27, test explanations for variation in support, and the effects of EU sanctions. The findings show high support, more pronounced in more liberal democratic countries, but feeble links to government positions on enforcement. At the individual-level, national identity, norm importance, and left-right orientation shape support patterns, but also satisfaction with national democracy. In backsliders, contrary to expectations, partisanship and EU sanctions have only limited effects. For the EU, this suggests that sanctions against backsliding member states are unlikely to provoke public backlash and could encourage more value-based arguments.