Polls in Italy have opened at 3 p.m. local time (1300 GMT) on Saturday, as Italians are taking part in the European Union (EU) election aimed at choosing the next parliament.

Over 51 million people here (including some 3 million new young voters) are eligible to cast their ballot to choose 76 Italian lawmakers out of total 720 Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) making the European assembly. Italian voting stations will close at 11 p.m. local time on Sunday.

Overall, the process across the 27 EU member states is taking place over 4 days (June 6-9), involving an estimated 360 million voters.

After being elected, the MEPs will have to choose the next president of the European Commission, which is the block's executive body. As such, the results of this vote will shape the EU's political path for the next five years.