On Monday 19 February in Berlin, the Chair of the CDU, Friedrich Merz, announced that the German Christian Democratic Party was proposing to the European People’s Party(EPP) that the current President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, be designated as the lead candidate (‘Spitzenkandidat’) at the European Party Congress on 6 and 7 March in Bucharest, with a view to the European elections in June.
“Within the Federal Executive Committee of the CDU Germany, we have unanimously proposed that Ursula von der Leyen should be the EPP’s main candidate”, Mr Merz told the press.
He praised the successes achieved by the ‘von der Leyen’ Commission since 2019, in particular its ability to ensure unity in the face of multiple crises, such as the Covid-19 pandemic and Russian military aggression in Ukraine.
In 2019, when the question of presiding over the European Commission arose, “I answered ‘yes’ intuitively” whereas today “I am making a very conscious and well-considered decision: I would like to run for a second term”, confirmed Ms von der Leyen. She said that after 5 years at the head of the EU institution, “not only has my passion for Europe grown, but of course also my experience of how much this Europe can achieve for its people”.
Mrs von der Leyen claimed it was important to provide “clarification” on her professional future as soon as possible. However, she is not seeking a seat in the European Parliament. And during the period leading up to the European elections, she will not be obliged to take leave of the Commission, in accordance with the revised Code of Conduct of the College of Commissioners (see EUROPE 13335/22).
An EPP victory in the European elections would guarantee the Christian Democrats a prominent place in the next European Parliament. Mr von der Leyen could therefore stand for a second term as President of the European Commission for a further 5 years. The European Council would then have to nominate her and the political leader would have to win a majority in the future European Parliament.
Being the Spitzenkandidat of a European party is no guarantee of being nominated by the EU27. In 2019, the EPP’s ‘Spitzenkandidat’ was the German Manfred Weber. Having failed to reach agreement on the person to be appointed to senior European posts, the European Council proposed the former German Defence Minister to the European Parliament (see EUROPE 12287/1).
For Ms von der Leyen, the number one priority of the next European legislative cycle is to “defend the democracy and values” of the EU. Faced with the challenges we are confronted with, we need to convince people that Europe is capable of providing “security in the broadest sense”, to its citizens, she said.
Reiterating her statements made at the Munich Security Conference last weekend, she confirmed that she wanted to give greater importance to the defence sector in the event of a second term. This competence would focus on the development of the “defence industry”, with a European Commissioner responsible for investment programmes and work to promote interoperability “in parallel” with what NATO is doing. But she did not endorse the French idea of a common European loan to finance joint purchases or arms production.
Ms von der Leyen also stressed the importance of continuing the transition of Member States’ economies towards ‘net-zero’ technologies, so that the EU is in a position to meet the objective of climate neutrality by 2050. Nevertheless, she advocated a close dialogue with industry, “sector by sector”, in order to understand the specific needs of European businesses to increase both their competitiveness and their commitment to the climate.
“We must achieve the climate targets with the economy”, she insisted. And the President of the Commission has promised to support the competitiveness of businesses, in particular by cutting red tape which will boost digitalisation.
When asked about the position of the Christian Democratic family vis-à-vis the conservatives and the far right, who could gain in importance on the political chessboard at European level, Mr Merz repeated on several occasions that the CDU was “the party of Europe in Germany”. He pledged that his party would fight the Euroscepticism and Europhobia of the extremes on both the left and the right. For Ms von der Leyen, one needs to show what the EU does for people on a daily basis, what it brings in terms of security, freedom, defence of the “social market economy” model and respect for the Rule of law. “This has no equivalent anywhere else in the world”, she insisted.
The German Terry Reintke, co-Spitzenkandidate of the European Green Party, has promised a “tough” election campaign. “The question for the EPP in the European elections is essential: will they work with authoritarian and far-right forces in the future that want to dismantle climate protection, social security and democracy in Europe? Or will they work with the pro-democratic and progressive forces to shape a secure, sustainable and democratic future for the citizens of Europe?” she asked in a press release.
Now that Ms von der Leyen’s intentions have been clarified, it seems unlikely that any other Christian Democrat candidates will come forward to compete with her between now and Wednesday 21 February, the deadline for nominations.
The President of both the EPP party and the EPP group in the European Parliament, Germany’s Manfred Weber, welcomed the CDU’s announcement. “A strong Europe needs strong leadership from the EPP and Ursula von der Leyen”, he said via X. He has never concealed the fact that the latter represented his political family’s plan A for the post of European Commissioner.
To see the press conference given by Ms von der Leyen and Mr Merz (in German): https://aeur.eu/f/awx (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)