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Ursula von der Leyen will serve a second term as European Commission president after comfortably winning the support of lawmakers with promises to boost the EU’s defence capabilities and economic competitiveness.
Von der Leyen, who has run the commission since 2019, pledged to stay the course on Europe’s green transition and in supporting Ukraine if given a second term. She has pitched herself as a safe pair of hands as the continent wrestles with war, disruptive new technologies and political upheaval in the US.
The German won 401 votes in the 720-strong European parliament, after the Green party supported a commission candidate for the first time, joining the three centrist parties that had publicly backed von der Leyen ahead of the secret ballot.
“We are building our own strength. We are strengthening the qualities that Europe has and we are working hard to have a strong Europe,” von der Leyen told reporters after her re-election was confirmed.
But she faces a tough battle to deliver on her wide-ranging and ambitious promises to restore the EU’s competitiveness and boost public and private investment, including in new areas such as defence and housing.
The commission’s first female chief led the EU through the coronavirus pandemic and the onset of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. She pledged to preserve the EU’s “competitive edge”, amid fears of the continent falling behind the US and China, in a pitch to a parliament that has shifted rightward following last month’s elections.
She promised to create new dedicated European commissioners for housing, defence, EU enlargement and the Mediterranean region with a remit to tackle migration.
A 31-page policy proposal released ahead of the vote referenced “investment” 49 times, appealing to cash-strapped EU governments that want to see long-delayed progress in better integrating the continent’s capital markets to unlock more private financing for defence, the green transition and digital needs.
“Europe needs more investment. From farming to industry. From digital to strategic technologies. But also more investment in people and their skills,” said von der Leyen.
The next EU budget, running from 2028 to 2035, should be more closely linked to respect for the rule of law, she added, as well as making disbursements conditional on reforms and investments, as is currently the case with the EU post-pandemic recovery funds.
“We will keep a very clear principle in our budget: respecting the rule of law is a must for EU funds. In this budget, and in the future,” she told the parliament, to applause.
She also said Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s recent meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin was “nothing but an appeasement mission”, vowing to maintain EU support for Ukraine’s defence against Moscow.
Her policy proposal document, agreed with the three centrist political parties, is a sharp pivot away from her first term, which was dominated by a sweeping plan to combat climate change.
She said on Thursday that the focus of that Green Deal would switch to implementing existing laws rather than passing new ones.
The Greens, who have 53 MEPs, nevertheless voted for her. Terry Reintke told the assembly in Strasbourg that they had “made compromises” while negotiating with von der Leyen. They ensured “the majority of pro-European groups in this house . . . keep the far right out”.
About 30 per cent of the deputies are from hard or far-right parties.
The proposed defence commissioner, lobbied for by EU capitals owing to Russia’s war and the increasing probability that Donald Trump will win the US election in November and reduce Washington’s commitment to European security, would seek to pool resources on military spending.
“Irrespective of elections in other parts of the world, it is important that . . . we have a stronger Europe,” she said when asked whether Trump’s campaign had affected her policy agenda.
Von der Leyen also proposed a European-wide air defence system and cyber protection as “projects of common European interest” that could attract EU funding.
EU business groups have long complained about Brussels regulations holding them back as they seek to compete with the US and China in emerging industries such as green technologies.
Von der Leyen proposed to charge a commission vice-president with “implementation and simplification” to make this process easier, and called for a new approach to EU merger policies that would allow companies to grow at home and take on global giants.
“We need a competition policy that supports companies to scale up,” she said. “Europe must be the home of opportunity and innovation.”
Manfred Weber, leader of von der Leyen’s European People’s party, the biggest in the assembly, said his members were “happy”. “Competitiveness, security, and stopping illegal migration are the priorities for the new commission.”
But one MEP said von der Leyen’s list of promises was “a European Christmas tree” with presents for all parties, while questioning whether it could all be delivered.
