European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will remain in office after Members of the European Parliament rejected a second no-confidence motion against her in Strasbourg on Thursday. A total of 383 MEPs voted against her removal, 133 supported the motion, and 78 abstained. A two-thirds majority of votes cast was required to oust von der Leyen, which would have resulted in the resignation of the entire European Commission. Earlier in the day, the Parliament also rejected another no-confidence motion filed by the Patriots for Europe group.
The Left group, which initiated Thursday’s second motion, accused von der Leyen of failing to take timely and adequate action regarding the situation in the Gaza Strip, as well as of concluding trade agreements with the United States and Mercosur to the detriment of European interests. Other stated reasons included the Commission’s inability and unwillingness to address social and climate crises.
During Monday’s debate on the motion, Left group co-chair Manon Aubry accused von der Leyen of being “an accomplice in the genocide in Gaza” and of having “capitulated to Donald Trump” – a reference to the trade deal with the US signed in July.
In early July, the European Parliament had already rejected another no-confidence motion against von der Leyen, that time tabled by the far-right.
The consideration of three no-confidence motions against a European Commission President within just a few months is unprecedented.
The European Parliament has never succeeded in toppling a Commission through a no-confidence vote. However, there was one exceptional case in 1999, when the Commission led by Luxembourg’s Jacques Santer resigned pre-emptively before a likely failed vote, following the release of a critical report implicating it in a fraud scandal.
/RY/
news.modal.text
