Ursula von der Leyen overcomes two motions of censure in the European Parliament
These two latest motions bring to three the number of no-confidence votes the European Commission president has faced since July.
Ursula von der Leyen, before the European Parliament
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen kept her job Tuesday after surviving two no-confidence motions brought by separate political groups in the European Parliament.
These two latest votes bring the total to three no-confidence motions that von der Leyen — who has faced criticism from across the political spectrum in the European Parliament — has had to endure since July. At that time, she kept her post as European Commission president after only 175 parliamentarians voted in favor of her removal.
On Tuesday, the German leader — a member of the center-right European People’s Party, or EPP — faced two no-confidence motions brought by parliamentary groups that are ideologically opposed to each other.
The first motion was introduced by the conservative Patriots for Europe group, or PfE, led by French politician Jordan Bardella. It received 179 votes in favor, 37 abstentions and 378 votes against.
Later, the Left group’s no-confidence motion — which promotes communist policies in Europe — was put to a vote. It received 133 votes in favor, 78 abstentions and 383 against.
After the votes, and knowing she had kept her seat as European Commission president, von der Leyen — who has been in office since December 2019 with two separate legislatures —expressed "deep" gratitude to the lawmakers who voted against her removal, saying she will continue working closely with the European Parliament to address Europe’s challenges.
Requirements for filing a motion of censure and how to successfully remove an EC president
Once that threshold is met, the motion is put to a single vote. To remove a Commission president, the motion must receive support from two-thirds of the Parliament, or 480 members.
The last censure motion brought against a Commission president before von der Leyen’s three was the one introduced against her predecessor, Luxembourg’s Jean-Claude Juncker, in November 2014.
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