The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, is likely to be nominated as the lead candidate (‘Spitzenkandidat’) at the electoral congress of the European People’s Party (EPP) on 6 and 7 March in Bucharest. She is in fact the only candidate for this position, announced the President of the EPP, her compatriot Manfred Weber, on Wednesday 21 February in Brussels.
Speaking to the press, Ms von der Leyen said she was “grateful” for the support from her political family, underlining the “excellent collaboration” establishes over the last 5 years.
The political leader has many supporters in the European Christian Democrat family, including the German CDU (see EUROPE 13353/1) as well as the ‘Civic Platform’ of the Polish Prime Minister, Donald Tusk, and the ‘New Democracy’ of the Greek Prime Minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis. But, as was the case in 2019, the French party ‘Les Républicains’ has chosen not to support her, considering her to be the candidate of the French president, Emmanuel Macron.
If the EPP wins the European elections in June, the former German defence minister will be eligible to preside over the European Commission for a further 5 years, provided she is nominated by the European Council and secures a majority in her favour in the European Parliament. Mr Weber was nominated as the EPP’s ‘Spitzenkandidat’ in 2019, but was not successful (see EUROPE 12287/1).
According to the EPP President, “Europe is in good hands” with Ms von der Leyen, pointing to the good results achieved by the European Commission since 2019 despite the many crises that Europe has faced, such as the Covid-19 pandemic, Russia’s military aggression in Ukraine, the energy crisis and soaring inflation. It is therefore “logical”, he observed, that she should become the leading candidate of the Christian Democrats and run for a second term as the head of the EU institution.
Mr Weber believes that his political family has regained a central position in Europe. They should have “14” heads of State or government in June, compared with 12 at present and only 7 in 2019. “The EPP is back”, he said, because people have confidence in its ability to manage crises.
Will you form an alliance with sovereignists and eurosceptics united under the banner of the European conservatives? “I will work with pro-EU, pro-NATO, pro-Ukraine parties, with supporters of our democratic values. (...) There has to be clear positioning”, replied Mrs von der Leyen. She pointed out that the European conservative family could change from its current configuration after the European elections.
Electoral manifesto. Asked about the themes of the forthcoming campaign, Ms von der Leyen reiterated several key themes: democracy and values, security in a broad sense, European defence to help Ukraine win the war, the climate transition with citizens and businesses, competitiveness, and reducing administrative burdens (‘1 in, 2 out’ principle).
Mr Weber indicated that in Bucharest, the European party will adopt its electoral manifesto detailing the above themes (see EUROPE 13331/25). According to a draft text dated 15 February, the EPP proposes three stages for European defence: - boosting the industrial base and establishing a single market by prioritising European equipment purchases; - using Treaty options to optimise EU competences and setting the share of the post-2027 EU budget dedicated to defence at 0.5%; - making the Defence Union a reality by having armed forces capable of rapid deployment.
On the fight against climate disruption, the Christian Democrats maintain the objective of climate neutrality for the EU by 2050. “Our hallmark is the European Green Deal”, they say in their draft manifesto. But, in their view, the time has now come for implementation through “an industry strategy” that will support all sectors to ensure that the climate transition is a source of competitiveness. “From wind to steel, from batteries to electric vehicles, our ambition is crystal clear: the future of our clean tech industry has to be made in Europe”, they stress.
“We need to fight climate change with people and companies”, said Ms von der Leyen. In her view, the question is not whether it is necessary, but how to do it. According to the President of the Commission, this will involve tailored approaches adapted to the needs of different sectors. Mr Weber said he was “proud” of the EPP’s positions, describing it as “the party of the Green Deal”, even though he fought to considerably weaken the regulation on nature restoration (see EUROPE 13290/1).
According to a parliamentary source, there are internal EPP debates on the enlargement process, in particular the validation of the various stages of the accession negotiations, which currently require the unanimous agreement of the EU Member States.
See the EPP’s draft election manifesto: https://aeur.eu/f/axu (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)