As the European Parliament elections approach, the spitzenkandidatens – the candidates chosen by the parties in the race for the presidency of the European Commission – will be in the spotlight.
European Parliament elections will take place in June and their results could change the political makeup of the European Union.
Voters in each member state will choose their MEPs, who will vote on a range of issues in the European Parliament and hold the executive to account.
The election of European deputies also has an impact on the choice of spitzenkandidat who will become the new president of the European Commission, that is to say the head of the EU executive.
What is a “spitzenkandidat”?
“Spitzenkandidat” means “lead candidate” in German and refers, in the European context, to the lead candidate of a European political party for the presidency of the European Commission.
These parties are groupings at the European level, made up of politically similar parties from different nations.
Parties choose a candidate who will be the face of their party and the potential future president of the European Commission.
How does the system work?spitzenkandidat”?
Once parliamentary elections are held, the European party capable of forming a majority government coalition will likely see its spitzenkandidat become the president of the Commission.
The European Council proposes a candidate for the presidency, “taking into account the elections to the European Parliament” and hoping that the candidate presented by the party having won the greatest number of seats will be “the first to be taken into consideration”.
The European Parliament then votes on the candidate, who must obtain a majority to be confirmed as Commission president.
If the candidate does not obtain the required majority, the European Council proposes a new name within one month, who will be elected using the same procedure.
What is the spitzenkandidat favorite?
The current President of the European Commission, Ursula Von der Leyen, announced in February that she wanted to run for a second term. She is expected to be officially named as a candidate for the center-right European People’s Party (EPP) at the group’s conference in early March. The EPP is the largest group in the chamber and is expected to remain so after the election.
In February, the European Left elected the Austrian Walter Baier as spitzenkandidat.
The Greens have already chosen Terry Reintke and Bas Eickhout as leaders for the elections, while the Social Democrats are expected to nominate Nicolas Schmit, the current European Commissioner for Employment and Social Rights, for the role.