The European People’s Party (EPP) nominated the current President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, as the lead candidate (‘Spitzenkandidat’) for the Christian Democrats in the European elections on Thursday 7 March, on the second day of its electoral congress in Bucharest (see EUROPE 13365/10).
If she wins next June, the German leader will be eligible to preside over the EU institution again, provided that the European Council, which will soon include thirteen EPP leaders, chooses her in June and the future European Parliament appoints her in an election due to take place in September.
One might have thought that in Bucharest, facing no opposition, Ms von der Leyen would be elected by an overwhelming majority, despite the known opposition of the French party Les Républicains (LR) and the Slovenian party of former Prime Minister Janez Janša.
This was not entirely the case. Of the 801 EPP delegate members, 737 were entitled to vote and 591 actually registered to take part, according to the EPP. In the end, 499 delegates took part in the anonymous ballot and, of the 489 ballots declared valid, 400 delegates approved the nomination of the German leader, while 89 rejected it, as abstentions were not possible.
“This result shows that our line is widely shared within the EPP. We were the first to say that we needed a new direction”, was the immediate reaction of François-Xavier Bellamy, head of the LR delegation in the European Parliament. The French delegation has “reservations” because “Ms von der Leyen came to France to take part in a meeting of a list competing with that of her party, and this is something incomprehensible and inexplicable”, former French minister and European Commissioner Michel Barnier told Agence Europe and Politico before the vote.
In her speech, Ms von der Leyen outlined the main themes that the Christian Democracy intends to highlight during the campaign, which are now compiled in the election manifesto that the EPP approved on Wednesday: security, competitiveness, the European Green Deal as an economic opportunity, the defence of fundamental values and the Rule of law, and unwavering support for Ukraine.
The President of the Commission also warned against attempts at destabilisation by extremists from both outside and inside the European Union. It has turned it into a real electoral “issue”.
“Our peaceful and united Europe is being challenged like never before by populists, nationalists and demagogues. Whether it is the far right or the far left. Whether it is the AfD, the Rassemblement National, the Confederatia or Wasraschdene. The names may be different, but the goal is the same: they want to trample on our values, and they want to destroy our Europe”, she warned. But we, the EPP, will never let that happen”.
While in countries such as Italy and Sweden, Christian Democrat parties have set up government coalitions supported by sovereignist or even far-right parties, Ms von der Leyen reiterated the EPP’s political line for forming a majority at European level: “We stand pro-EU, pro-Ukraine, pro-Rule of Law. In the spirit of De Gasperi, Adenauer, Vaclav Havel and Lech Wałęsa”.
Anyone who does not respect these principles will not be eligible to join a political majority at European level, warn the Christian Democrats.
Several other leaders have set the bar a little higher, making the forthcoming European elections a civilisational issue. This was particularly true of the Polish Prime Minister, Donald Tusk, who received a standing ovation for the measures taken to re-establish the Rule of law in Poland.
In his view, “the battle against authoritarian trends, corruption and lies is taking place on many fronts”, the most dramatic of which is the Ukrainian-Russian front. “But the responsibility for the fate of the Western civilisation, based on the freedom and respect for each and every individual lies with each and everyone of us in every place”, he said.
The Chair of the EPP party, Germany’s Manfred Weber, spoke of building a “firewall” to prevent Europe’s “enemies” from undermining “the European way of life”. Europe is our home, it’s not just a market place, contrary to what the liberals think, it’s not a cash machine, contrary to what Viktor Orbán believes, nor a bureaucratic machine, contrary to what the left says, he stressed.
In front of the press, Ms von der Leyen was asked about the EPP’s willingness to apply the ‘safe third country’ principle in the field of migration, so that a third country qualified as such would be able to take in refugees on behalf of the European Union.
Don’t you think that such a concept would be rejected by the Socialists and Liberals, with whom the EPP could form a new coalition? “On the contrary”, the German leader explained, pointing out that this concept was “already part of EU law”, without going into further detail. For her, the ‘safe third country’ concept will make it possible both to respect the dignity of migrants against exploitation by smugglers, and to decide, in a humane manner and according to the circumstances, who will be able to enter the EU via legal migration channels.
Late on Thursday afternoon in Bucharest, the EPP was not in a position to present Ms von der Leyen’s campaign team or her forthcoming travel plans as Christian Democrat “Spitzenkandidat’, with announcements promised in the coming days. In an unprecedented move, the German leader will continue to chair the European Commission throughout the election campaign. In order to avoid confusion of functions, she has announced the creation of a specific campaign account via X (@vonderleyen_epp).
To see Ms von der Leyen’s speech: https://aeur.eu/f/b6y
To see the EPP election manifesto: https://aeur.eu/f/b4n (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)