Ursula von der Leyen Reelected to EU Top Job for Another 5-Year Term

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen reacts after being elected to a second term at the helm of the commission, at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, on July 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Jean-Francois Badias)

Ursula von der Leyen has been reelected to a second 5-year term at the helm of the European Union’s executive body, with the 65-year-old former German defense minister promising to bolster European prosperity, staying the course on climate action, and calling for more military investment while warning that Europe’s liberty is in peril for the first time in decades.

Ms. von der Leyen won reelection in a July 18 vote in the European Parliament, with 401 members voting in favor, 284 against, and 22 casting blank or invalid votes.

In a speech at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, delivered one day before the vote, Ms. von der Leyen pitched a program that included a focus on economic prosperity and competitiveness, boosting economic growth by cutting red tape, deepening the EU single market, and supporting small and medium enterprises.

“They are the heart of our economy,” she said, referring to small and medium enterprises. “Therefore, let us get rid of burdensome micromanagement, and give them more trust and better incentives.”

Ms. von der Leyen also pledged not to backtrack on the European Green Deal and its goals of transforming the EU economy in line with its climate action agenda. As part of this promise, she pledged in a policy document to enshrine a 90 percent emission-reduction target for 2040 in EU law, while vowing to put forward a new Clean Industrial Deal in her first 100 days in office, which she said would scale up and prioritize investment in nonfossil fuel energy infrastructure and technologies.

Her speech also focused heavily on security, pledging to continue backing Ukraine in its war against Russia “for as long as it takes,” while calling for investment in high-end defense capabilities and the establishment of a European defense union.

“We need to invest more. We need to invest together. And we must set up common European projects,” she said. “For example, a comprehensive aerial defense system—a European Air Shield, not only to protect our airspace but as a strong symbol of European unity in defense matters.”

In the policy document that lays out her proposals, Ms. von der Leyen said the security component of her program would also include projects focused on cyber and space defense, as well as a common approach to preventing and preparing for new threats, particularly those linked to chemical, biological, and nuclear security.

“For the first time in decades, our freedom is under threat. It is our responsibility to do all that is necessary to protect our European citizens,” she said, while also pledging to bolster the EU–NATO relationship to “cover all threats,” including what she described as “new dangers” associated with cyber, hybrid, or space warfare.

The Kremlin reacted to Ms. von der Leyen’s call for the establishment of a defense union by saying it signals a militarization of the EU and heightened tensions with Russia.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Ms. von der Leyen’s proposals gave a “military colouring” to the EU and “confirms the general attitude of European states to militarisation, escalation of tension, confrontation and reliance on confrontational methods in their foreign policy.”

Besides enhancing Europe’s posture to deter and defend against military threats, Ms. von der Leyen also promised to tackle organized criminal networks that she said are infiltrating the bloc. In her speech, she pledged to double the number of staff at Europol, the EU’s law enforcement agency, and strengthen its mandate.

She also called for tougher border security measures, pledging to triple the number of European border and coast guards to 30,000, promising to do everything possible to make Europe’s borders stronger.

Following the vote that cements her position at the helm of the EU for another term, Ms. von der Leyen will, in the coming weeks, propose her team of commissioners, who will face hearings from lawmakers before they vote on the composition of the whole European Commission later in the year.