Von der Leyen Confirmed for Second Term as EU Commission President... First Woman in 66 Years

Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission (EU) (65), has secured a five-year second term.

Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission of the European Union (EU). [Image source=Yonhap News]

On the 18th (local time), President von der Leyen received 401 out of 720 votes in the approval vote held at the plenary session of the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, surpassing the majority. The approval threshold was 360 votes.

There were 284 votes against, and 15 abstentions. The rest were invalid votes.

Since there was virtually no candidate to replace her and uncertainty in the political situation inside and outside Europe was rising, the result is interpreted as reflecting a sentiment that ‘stable leadership’ is needed.

Von der Leyen was the first woman to be elected as the head of the EU executive, the President of the European Commission, in 2019. By succeeding in her re-election on this day, she set another new record as the ‘first woman’ once again.

Since the Commission was established as the EU executive body in 1958, only two male former presidents have succeeded in serving a second term over the past 66 years: the late Jacques Delors (January 1985?January 1995) and Jos? Manuel Barroso (November 2004?October 2014).

A physician by training and a mother of seven, German national President von der Leyen attracted attention from the start of her political career in Germany. After serving as Minister for Family Affairs and Minister of Labour in the German federal government, she was appointed the first female Minister of Defence in 2013. She led the Ministry of Defence for six years before being elected the first female President of the European Commission in December 2019.

The President of the European Commission is called the ‘top leader’ of the EU, along with the permanent chair of the European Council, which represents the EU externally. As an independent organization representing the interests of the entire EU, separate from the 27 member states, the Commission performs executive functions such as proposing legislation, implementing policies, managing and executing the budget, and handling the day-to-day operations of the EU.