European leaders meet to decide which positions to fill in Brussels, von der Leyen prepares to run for a second term

Published on: 06/17/2024 – 08:34

3 minutes

Far-right victories in the European elections, which triggered snap elections and political upheaval in France, appear to have focused minds on the positions at the top of the bloc – negotiated among its members for the sake of geographical balance and politics.

While the leaders were to officially make their choices known during the summit on June 27 and 28, a consensus already seems to be emerging.

“I believe that things can move forward effectively. That is at least my wish and that will be my state of mind on Monday,” declared French President Emmanuel Macron after the G7 summit in Italy, where he is maintained with both countries. Chancellor Olaf Scholz and von der Leyen.

Scholz sent a similar message, telling ARD television that “a political majority is coming together” and “things could be decided quickly.”

Monday’s meeting will start at 6:00 p.m. (16:00 GMT) with von der Leyen in attendance – but the commission head will leave before dinner, when leaders are due to discuss the top posts.

Von der Leyen’s European People’s Party (EPP) was the big winner in the June 6-9 European parliamentary elections, cementing the German conservative’s candidacy for five more years at the helm of the executive body of the world’s second-largest economy.

Other roles to be decided are: president of the European Council, which represents member states and is currently held by Charles Michel; and the “high representative” – the head of EU foreign policy – ​​currently Josep Borrell.

The second group in Parliament, the Socialists and Democrats (S&D), has its eyes on the Council’s position – with Antonio Costa, the 62-year-old former Portuguese prime minister, seen as the front-runner.

Costa resigned after becoming embroiled in a corruption investigation – but the affair appears to have since unraveled, and diplomats suggest it is unlikely to stand in his way.

The top representative position could go to Kaja Kallas, 46, current Estonian prime minister and vocal critic of the Kremlin – which would send a strong signal to the Eastern EU.

A fourth position is at stake: that of president of the European Parliament, decided by the legislator and not by the leaders. It is likely that he will reappoint the outgoing president, Roberta Metsola, 45, of the EPP, for a new mandate of 2.5 years.

Macron and Scholz weakened

To get the green light from EU leaders, von der Leyen, 65, needs the support of a “qualified majority” of 15 out of 27 countries, covering at least 65% of the bloc’s population.

A dozen leaders come from her EPP political group – but she also needs to convince Macron, from the centrist Renew Europe group, and Scholz from the S&D.

The two leaders of the Franco-German axis at the heart of the European Union emerged weakened after being defeated by far-right parties in this month’s elections.

The most spectacular in France is that the National Rally (RN) of Marine Le Pen beat the president’s party, which now finds itself facing the prospect that the leader of the RN – Jordan Bardella, 28 years old, in favor of TikTok – potentially become his Prime Minister.

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Scholz, meanwhile, is resisting calls to also call early elections, as his party achieved its worst result in the European elections, behind the far-right AfD and, in first place, the opposition bloc CDU-CSU .

Conversely, the elections have strengthened the position of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who diplomats say may want to let the dust settle in the new European Parliament – where her far-right group party has won seats and could still win more – and negotiate accordingly.

The obstacle of Parliament

If, as expected, von der Leyen ultimately pockets enough leadership votes, she will be able to start choosing her commissioners – drawn from each of the EU member countries taking into account gender balance and political affiliation .

But she will still have one obstacle to overcome.

The new European Parliament must approve the choice of leaders and proposed commissioners.

Most lawmakers in the EPP, which holds 190 seats in the new parliament’s 720 seats, will support von der Leyen – but she will need outside support to secure a majority.

This would likely come from the other dominant political families, the S&D and Renew, or the Greens – but von der Leyen has also hedged her positions by courting the far-right Meloni.

(AFP)