European Leaders Back Ursula von der Leyen for Another Term as Giorgia Meloni and Viktor Orbán Express Opposition

The European Union member states meeting in Brussels have agreed to support Ursula von der Leyen for the next term as chairman of the commission. The agreement was announced late Thursday night. Meanwhile, the former prime minister of Portugal, Antonio Costa, a social democrat, was elected to lead the European Council. The Prime Minister of Estonia, Kaja Kallas, representing the Renew parliamentary group, was elected as the EU’s new high representative for foreign and security policy.

The appointment package was agreed upon by the leaders of six EU countries earlier in the week. This included the German Chancellor, French President, Polish Prime Minister, Greek Prime Minister, Spanish Prime Minister, and the Prime Minister of the Netherlands. Most other EU country leaders also supported the agreed appointments.

During the meeting, Italy’s far-right prime minister, Georgia Meloni, abstained from voting for von der Leyen and voted against Costa and Kallas. Meanwhile, Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orbán voted against von der Leyen but abstained for Kallas. Von der Leyen will need a parliamentary majority to support her for a second term.

The vote on von der Leyen may take place as early as July 18. If she does not receive the required support, EU leaders will have a month to choose a new candidate and start the process again. In addition to the appointments, the EU countries signed a security agreement with Ukraine and discussed defense against the Russian threat.

The European Council meeting will continue on Friday. Prime Minister Costa of Portugal will start his role as president of the European Council on December 1, following the departure of Charles Michel. The EU’s strategic priorities for the next five years were also agreed upon during the meeting.