Who Will Be The Next EU President?

We Stand pro-EU, pro-Ukraine, pro-rule of law. We need toturbocharge our defense industrial capacity in the next 5 years. Europe must spend more Europe,must spend better and Europe must spend European. So it’s confirmed – Ursula von der Leyen isofficially the EPP Group's Spitzenkandidat, positioning her as the leadingcontender for EU Commission President. The Spitzenkandidat process allows EU politicalgroups to nominate a lead candidate for Commission President, with the winning group's candidatetypically becoming the Commission President. But here's the kicker – it doesn't always workout that way. The Spitzenkandidat process has its fair share of critics and controversies,which we'll get into a bit later in the video. Now, onto the competition. Does Ursulavon der Leyen have any challengers? You.

Bet she does! The European Parliamentis home to seven major political groups, and most of them have nominated their ownSpitzenkandidaten to contest the presidency. Kicking things off, we've got NicolasSchmit, a 70-year-old from Luxembourg, rocking the S&D party as their lead candidate.As the current European Commissioner for Jobs and Social Rights, he is a veteran in Europeanpolitics, dedicated to championing social justice. We have to have a social Europe. A social Europewhere every citizen feels not left behind. We are taking care of citizens, all those also who mighthave difficulties in present times. Purchasing power but also the transitions and the changesin our economy, we will not leave them behind. Next up in the Greens' corner, we've got: Terry Reintke, from Germany, who is all about eco-friendly policies and fairness for everyone.

And Bas Eickhout, a Dutch climate change warrior with a Nobel Prize to his name. Yes, there are two of them, and they'll have to fight it out for the presidency if the Greens win the commission – which, let's be honest, they almost certainly won't. It takes courage to change our ways. Forexample to make steel with renewable energy, or to invent new methods of producing itemswithout using polluting chemicals, or to create millions of jobs that the green transformationcan bring. All of this deserves courage and I want us to be the ally of all of those people who arealready doing that as we speak. Because EP and the Liberals are wrong when they say that the greendeal is something that goes against our economy. Over at Renew Europe, the Spitzenkandidatscene is a bit of a cliffhanger – no one's.

Been crowned just yet. The spotlight's on Hayer,a pro-Macron MEP from the Renaissance, who's gone from under-the-radar to front-and-centre aftersnagging the Renew Europe Presidency in January. Jumping over to The Left, they have nominatedWalter Baier from Austria, with a communist background, as their top candidate. Baierbrings a wealth of experience and a deep commitment to social justice, underpinned byhis academic work and anti-fascist activism. Reserve 7% of the European Union GDP for education, research and innovation. In the European Parliament and European Commission demand 2% of the GDP for arnament expenditures. No! The opposite is necessary. Spend 2% of our GDP for culture and art, for education, for healthcare, for strengthening our public services. For the Right-wing ECR and IDgroups, the Spitzenkandidaten.

Process remains off the table, as they'veconsistently opposed it since 2019. Thus, the closest figures to a Spitzenkandidat withinthese groups are their respective presidents. In the ECR, co-chairmen Ryszard Legutko ofPoland's Law and Justice party and Nicola Procaccini from Italy's Brothers of Italy leadthe charge, emphasising conservative values and national sovereignty. However, there are alreadyindications that Ryszard Legutko will be replaced. And over in the ID group, MarcoZanni of Italy's League party is at the forefront of euroscepticadvocacy and calls for EU reform. We have to be proud of our culture. We have tobe proud of our identities. We have to be proud to have nation states that have been in the pastand are now today the center of democracy in the.

World, this is very very important. Crisis aftercrisis they decided to centralise more decisions to Brussel to steal more powers from Member Statesfrom our capitals to the European Union. And the result was that Europe is poorer compared toto the uh to to our parents to to our relatives The European Commission presidencyrace is packed, but realistically, few candidates stand a strong chancedue to low polling numbers. At the forefront is the EPP with Ursula vonder Leyen, followed by the S&D's Nicolas Schmit. The ECR also makes an appearance,albeit with a lesser-known campaign face. But does a win for the EPP guarantee Ursulavon der Leyen the presidency again? No, it wouldn't be the EU if it was this simple.

After the parliament elections, the leadersof the EU's 27 countries determine a nominee for Commission President behind closed doors,in what’s less of a democratic ballet and more of a political tug-of-war. Once they'vearm-wrestled their way to a consensus, their nominee has to convince a majorityof MEPs to vote them into power. Therefore, nothing is certain.Back in 2019, Manfred Weber, the EPP's Spitzenkandidat, was all set forthe big chair. But in a crazy plot twist, in the backroom cloak-and-daggerdealings between Member State leaders, Ursula von der Leyen was catapulted onto thecentre stage, stunning just about everyone. Nonetheless, as you can see from ourCommission President leaderboard,.

We feel that Ursula von der Leyen is stillthe firm favourite to win the election. At EU Made Simple, we're not fans of the current process for electing the EU President andbelieve it's high time for some change. We have identified 3 possible reform options: Empower the European Parliament and enableit to nominate Commission Presidency candidates. This could make the selectionprocess more democratic and transparent. Strengthen the Spitzenkandidaten Systemso that the winning political group's lead candidate should automaticallystep up as Commission President. Or Direct Elections by EU Citizens:.

Where the EU's citizens directlyvote for the Commission President. Each of these options has its upsides anddownsides and we are curious to hear your thoughts. Personally, we're leaningtowards making the Spitzenkandidaten system a firm rule. It's about making surevoters truly have a say in who leads them. This was episode 3 of our “Road to theEU Elections” series! Our goal is to make the Elections fun and simple. Eachepisode will feature a spotlight story, followed by the current polls and the racefor Commission President. Check out the video linked above if you are new to politics andsubscribe today. And if you're keen on supporting our mission to educate the public about the EU,consider signing up to Patreon. Until next time!.

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