European leaders do not oppose the idea of a process of lead candidates ('Spitzenkandidaten') to give a familiar face to European political families campaigning for the European elections of May 2019.
But anxious to protect their prerogatives and to keep wriggle room in the light of future election results, the EU27 rejects any automaticity whereby the Spitzenkandidat designated by the European political party that won the European elections would automatically become president of the...