STRASBOURG – The opening session of the new European Parliament is scheduled for Tuesday, 16 July, with the election of the President and Vice-Presidents of the EU’s legislative body on the agenda. On Thursday, 18 July, a debate and voting on the re-election of Ursula von der Leyen as President of the European Commission are taking place.
Roberta Metsola, a Maltese politician and representative of the European People’s Party (EPP), is a candidate for another term as the President of the European Parliament. Metsola has held this office since January 2022.
According to the current rules, the President of the EP is elected for a period of two and a half years, by secret ballot procedure and needs to obtain an absolute majority of votes (50 per cent plus one vote). If the candidate/candidates do not receive enough votes in the first round, two more rounds of votes may be held. If there is no winner after the third round, the two candidates with the most votes enter the fourth round in which the winner is decided by a simple majority.
Roberta Metsola: The pro-European majority may hold, but it will not be an easy mandate
Roberta Metsola’s candidacy for the President of the European Parliament was officially announced last month, following a meeting of the leaders of the European People’s Party, which received the most votes in the election for the European Parliament, on 6-9 June. Addressing the plenary session of the EP Committee on Economic and Social Affairs on 10 July, Metsola said that it would not be an easy mandate.
“The new Parliament will be different from the previous one. Many people were elected to destroy us”, Roberta Metsola said, referring to the rise of the right-wing parties after the EP election.
According to Metsola, a pro-European majority can survive, but we need collective responses on security, growth and housing policy.
“If we fail to respond to these challenges, citizens will be tempted to turn to extremists”, she said.
Election of 14 Vice-Presidents and 5 quaestors
Following the election of the President of the European Parliament, 14 Vice-Presidents are selected by the EP. Candidates are also selected by a secret ballot procedure, which is scheduled for 16 July. All candidates are on a single ballot. Each member of the EP can vote for a maximum of 14 candidates for the Vice-Presidents.
The candidates who achieve an absolute majority of votes in the first round, a maximum 14 of them, are declared “elected” by the order of the votes received. If there are empty seats after the first round, a second round shall be held, followed by a third round for which a relative majority is sufficient. If there are only 14 candidates, they will be elected by acclamation, with voting determining only their order.
On the next day, 17 July, the European Parliament will decide on the so-called “quaestors”. Five quaestors are elected, in a similar way as Vice-Presidents. Quaestors are responsible for administrative and financial matters, which directly affect members of the European Parliament. Members of the EP will also decide next week on the number and composition of Committees and Sub-committees. The agenda of the opening session will include a discussion on the main conclusions of the European Council Meeting, adopted on 27 June, including on Ukraine.
Ursula von der Leyen in the “race” for votes
Ursula von der Leyen‘s address to the European Parliament is scheduled for Thursday, 18 July, and it will be followed by voting for her re-election as the President of the European Commission. To remain at the helm of the EC, she needs to get at least 361 votes, out of a total of 720 MEPs.
While there are claims that some members of the European People’s Party, which nominated von der Leyen for the post, could vote against her, it is expected that she will get the green light for a second term, with the support of representatives of the Socialists and Democrats, as well as the Liberals, and possibly the Greens.
If supported by the European Parliament, von der Leyen is due to announce in early September the distribution of portfolios in the EC and how she will organise the work of the future Commission. Finally, all Commissioners (the so-called “College of Commissioners”), including the President and the High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy/Vice-President of the EC, should be approved by the European Parliament.
The approval of the EP will be preceded by hearings of the candidates for Commissioners in the relevant parliamentary committees. If the European Parliament does not approve the candidate for the President of the EC, the European Council must propose a new candidate within one month.