Von der Leyen can now begin to put together her commission together with the EU member states. The members of the ÖVP, SPÖ, NEOS and Greens said they voted in favour, while the FPÖ voted once morest.
It was a secret vote. However, von der Leyen was probably elected primarily by the MEPs from her EPP group as well as with the votes of the Social Democrats, Liberals and Greens. Shortly before the election, the European Greens announced their yes to von der Leyen on the online platform X. With 401 votes, von der Leyen clearly achieved the necessary absolute majority of 360 of the current 719 MEPs.
A previous motion by the left-wing group to postpone the election until September was rejected. The motion was approved by 101 MEPs and 531 were once morest.
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Analysis: From the Greens to Meloni – how von der Leyen managed the balancing act
Vilimsky: “Five years were really more than enough”
For FPÖ delegation leader Harald Vilimsky, “five years of Ursula von der Leyen as head of the EU Commission were really more than enough. The fact that a coalition of EPP, Socialists, Liberals and Greens is now giving her a second term is bad news for Europe’s citizens. Because that means even more centralism, even more dirigism, even less freedom. That is why we voted once morest this appointment.” In her first term in office, von der Leyen “used all the crises of the past few years to satisfy the Brussels central bureaucracy’s hunger for power by granting it more and more powers,” explained the winner of the European elections in Austria.
Lopatka pleased regarding re-election
Von der Leyen’s EPP colleague and head of the ÖVP delegation in the EU Parliament, Reinhold Lopatka, expressed his delight at her re-election in a press release. “Securing prosperity, increasing the competitiveness of our companies and especially SMEs, more cooperation for security and defense, effective external border protection and the rapid implementation of the asylum and migration pact are at the top of the agenda for her and us,” said Lopatka.
Schieder: “Don’t give the agitators a chance”
“With today’s election we have shown that we are serious and that we will not give the agitators in Europe a chance. The rule of law, women’s rights and democracy will continue to be the cornerstones of our society,” said SPÖ delegation leader Andreas Schieder, expressing his agreement. “We have succeeded in ensuring that affordable housing will be an EU priority in the coming years, with a responsible EU Commissioner, a ‘European Affordable Housing Plan’ and massive investments in housing construction and renovation.”
Greens also for Von der Leyen
Green MEPs Thomas Waitz and Lena Schilling also said they voted for von der Leyen. “Ursula von der Leyen’s announcements in the agricultural sector, such as fair prices for farmers and the fight once morest unfair trading practices, are the first steps to ensure the survival of small and medium-sized farms in Europe,” Waitz explained his decision. “She has clearly committed herself to the Green Deal and to reducing CO2 emissions by 2040,” Schilling said.
Brandstätter: “We take them at their word”
“Europe needs a leadership that guarantees democratic values and European unity. When faced with threats from within and without, we must come together. Mrs von der Leyen has clearly promised to work towards this and we are taking her at her word,” said Helmut Brandstätter, head of the NEOS delegation in the EU Parliament. “That is why we have assumed our democratic responsibility today and, despite some reservations, elected Ursula von der Leyen as Commission President.”
Von der Leyen sharply criticized Orban
Von der Leyen used her application speech in the European Parliament to sharply criticize Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. “This so-called peace mission was a pure appeasement mission” (presumably an allusion to the British appeasement policy towards Hitler before the Second World War), she said to applause, but also cries of protest with regard to Orbán’s controversial trip to Moscow.
Von der Leyen did not mention Orbán directly, but spoke only of a “European Prime Minister”. However, it was clear who she meant with her statement. In reference to Hungary, she also stressed that in order to receive EU funds, “the rule of law must always be respected”. Due to concerns regarding the rule of law, billions of EU funds intended for Hungary are still frozen.
Asylum and migration pact has priority
Before the meeting, she had already published “guidelines” for her future term in office. The priorities remain similar to those before: the asylum and migration pact is to be implemented and the EU’s external borders are to be strengthened. A new joint approach is to enable more returns. She also announced that the number of employees at the EU border agency Frontex will be increased to 30,000.
In her speech, she also announced her own EU Commissioner to deal with the issue of affordable housing. This can be seen as a concession to the social democratic S&D group. She went on to say that she wanted to strengthen the Green Deal for climate protection, but also announced a push for exceptions to the phase-out of combustion engines for e-fuels. This is in the interests of Austria and the Chancellor’s party, the ÖVP, which has positioned itself once morest a complete phase-out of combustion engines. She wants to present a plan for agriculture to deal with the consequences of climate change. She also reiterated her announcement to create a separate EU Defense Commissioner. Europol is also to be expanded into a proper EU police authority.
