EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen faced an unexpected challenge as she sought re-election for a second five-year term at the helm of the European Union’s powerful executive body from her party.
The European People’s Party (EPP), her own political family, delivered a surprising blow by outvoting her in a party vote during the Congress in Bucharest.
Despite facing no clear rival, von der Leyen failed to secure unanimous support within the EPP, garnering 400 votes in favor, while 89 delegates voted against her re-election, with 10 abstentions among the 801 delegates present at the Congress.
EU Commissioner Thierry Breton, a prominent figure in the European Commission, seized the moment to question the confidence of the EPP in von der Leyen’s leadership.
In a thinly veiled swipe at his boss, Breton wrote on X: “Despite her qualities, Ursula von der Leyen [has been] outvoted by her own party. The real question now: Is it possible to (re) entrust the management of Europe to the EPP for 5 more years, or 25 years in a row? The EPP itself does not seem to believe in its candidate.”
Despite the setback, the vote resulted in an endorsement for Ursula von der Leyen’s bid for a second term as head of the European Commission, a role she has held since 2019.
The EPP is expected to remain the largest group in the EU’s legislature following the June elections. However, von der Leyen’s reappointment still requires approval from leaders of the EU’s member states, and nearly half of the EU’s 27 national leaders are members of the EPP.
As the two-day EPP meeting concluded, von der Leyen highlighted the challenges Europe faces, including the rise of populism and Russia’s aggression towards Ukraine.
She warned against the threat posed by demagogues, adding: “Our peaceful and united Europe is being challenged like never before by populists, by nationalists, by demagogues, whether it’s the far right or it’s the far left. The EPP will never let that happen.”
Since taking office in 2019, von der Leyen has steered the EU through various crises, including Brexit, the COVID-19 pandemic, and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. She has also championed the Green Deal, aiming to make the EU climate-neutral by 2050.
Von der Leyen emphasised Europe’s efforts to reduce dependence on Russian energy, citing the success in resisting Putin’s blackmail with cleaner energy alternatives. In 2022, wind and solar energy generated a record 22 percent of the EU’s electricity, surpassing fossil gas and coal power, according to a review by Ember, an energy think tank.
