Ursula von der Leyen’s promise of a Joint Committee undermined by Member States

The president of the European Commission, re-elected in July, asked member states to send her two names, one man and one woman, for the posts of commissioners. But this request has not been respected.

The European Union (EU) is assembling its new executive team. Member States have until Friday, August 30 to propose the 26 profiles that will make up the future European Commission. Given the names already submitted to the president of the institution, Ursula von der Leyen, re-elected on July 18 by Parliament after the European elections of June 9, the next commission is likely to be very largely male.

Ursula von der Leyen, who is aiming for a gender-balanced college of commissioners, had asked EU governments to propose two names for each position, one man and one woman, in a letter sent on 25 July, recalls Euractiv. The president is then responsible for distributing the positions, one per member state. This college of 27 commissioners (including Ursula von der Leyen) forms the equivalent of a government at European level.

Except that most of the member states have not played the game. Those that have already advanced their pawns have so far only proposed one name, most often that of a man. According to Politico’s count, 17 men are on the list, but only five countries have proposed women: Estonia, Spain, Croatia, Finland and Sweden. For its part, France has submitted the name of Thierry Breton, already a European Commissioner during the previous term.

If all these names were validated, it would mean that at least 63% of the commissioners are men. A figure far from parity, while the number of female MEPs fell for the first time after the June elections, to 38.75% of elected members, reports Euronews. Before the European elections, the Commission had 14 men and 13 women.

While Ursula von der Leyen has so far refused to comment on these figures, others are outraged. “I think this is very bad news and that member states should do what Ursula von der Leyen has asked them to do.”confided the Spanish socialist MEP Lina Galvez, head of the women’s rights committee, to Politico. “The new Commission must not be a men’s club”the German minister was indignant on Friday. European Affairs Minister Anna Lührmann speaks to the Berlin Playbook newsletter.

Could the situation change by the start of the school year? According to European treaties, governments have no other obligation than to submit a name to the President of the European Commission. Ursula von der Leyen could still oppose it, believes Alberto Alemanno, professor at HEC and EU specialist on X, recalling that the commissioners must be chosen “by mutual agreement”. It is, however, difficult to imagine the leader publicly opposing a national government, given that her attitude sometimes irritated the leaders of the Twenty-Seven during her previous term.

Things could then be decided in Parliament, which will hear the commissioners chosen by the Commission President in the coming months. It is not uncommon for MEPs, after intense hearings, to reject one or more profiles. For example, the candidacy of the Frenchwoman Sylvie Goulard was rejected in 2019. “‘Weak’ male candidates could struggle in the European Parliament and many of them could be rejected”Austrian socialist MEP Andreas Schieder predicts to Politico.