Brussels, 02/05/2016 (Agence Europe) - Italy is the only member state which considers that formally incorporating the “Spitzenkandidaten” practice in EU electoral law would be “feasible”.
“In principle”, an Italian diplomatic source told EUROPE on Monday 2 May, “we're not against it”. The source highlighted previous statements made by Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi that the post of president of the European Commission should be made more political and ways found to bring Europe closer to its citizens.
Before the 2014 European elections, the main European political parties designated their respective candidates for election as Commission president (“Spitzenkandidaten”) in the event of victory. Thus it was that Luxembourg Christian Democrat Jean-Claude Juncker, the candidate for the European People's Party (EPP), was proclaimed Commission president by the European Parliament. This innovative process had been successfully pushed by the Parliament, without its having any explicit legal basis. It received a cool reception from some member states, such as Germany. Even though the Treaty calls on the European Council to take account of the outcome of the European elections in designating a candidate to head the Commission, those member states refused to have their hand forced.
This position remains very widespread with the Council of the EU. Three times the member states have discussed the proposed review of EU electoral law put to them by the European Parliament (see EUROPE 11429). Parliament believes that it is time to cast in stone the practice of designating “Spitzenkandidaten” who would even lead transnational lists in the 2019 European elections. However, “all delegations but one are opposed to these provisions”, states a leaked Dutch Presidency of the Council document. This document summarises the expert discussions to date, and corroborates the information which appeared in the German daily Süddeutsche Zeitung at the end of April. The Council's legal staff also believe institutionalising the “Spitzenkandidaten” procedure to be “highly problematic” in that it might “encroach on the institutional prerogatives of the European Council”, according to a document posted by Sven Giegold (Greens/EFA, Germany) on his website.
“The Council wants to remove our paragraph on the heads of lists in the European elections”, Jo Leinen (S&D, Germany), who, along with Danuta Huebner (EPP, Poland), drafted Parliament's legislative proposal, told EUROPE. This virtually unanimous rejection is a “knee-jerk reaction” from member states which “are realising that power has shifted from the Council to Parliament”, he said, convinced that refusing the Parliament proposal would be tantamount to “a step backward for democracy”. Certainly, it will be possible, between now and 2019, to reproduce the same level of pressure for the “Spitzenkandidaten” practice to be repeated but making it part of electoral law would provide “a guarantee”, he said, too.
At their request, the two joint rapporteurs and Parliament President Martin Schulz met Dutch Defence Minister Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert to discuss this issue. The two MEPs will meet the Dutch ambassador to the EU in the near future.
On the legislative level, the reform is unusual in that it comes directly from the European Parliament. The member states will have to come to a unanimous decision, with Parliament thereafter being required to achieve an absolute majority for accepting or rejecting the Council text in its entirety. According to a Parliament source, it is therefore crucial that discussions with the member states take place before the Council agrees its position. National ambassadors to the EU (Coreper) could discuss this matter in May.
Other provisions in the proposal for the reform of EU electoral law received a less chilly welcome from the member states, however. These were measures to: - settle the electoral lists at least 12 weeks before the European elections take place; - permit all member state nationals residing in third countries to vote in the European elections; - put in place a minimum threshold of votes to be obtained before being elected to the European Parliament; - adding to candidates' campaign material the logo of the European party to which the national party belongs. (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)