Ursula von der Leyen has chosen her current chief of staff to run her campaign ahead of the European Parliament elections, Euronews said.
Bjoern Seibert will serve as campaign manager from 8 April until the conclusion of the continental elections on 9 June, while acting as chief spokesman for Alexander Winterstein, a high-ranking official in the European Commission’s communications department. Seibert will be on unpaid leave from 6 April to 9 June because rules prohibit von der Leyen from hiring him in a part-time position. Seibert will resume his work as cabinet chief on 10 June, the Commission said in a statement.
The statement was released on Friday morning by the centre-right European People’s Party (EPP) and immediately raised ethical questions as both appointees come from an institution that is contractually independent of party politics.
Von der Leyen herself is not seeking a hemispheric seat, but is acting as the EPP’s leading candidate for the Commission presidency for a second five-year term. Therefore, Spitzenkandidaten system, the party with the most seats “has the right” to send its leading candidate to the top of the powerful executive.
Von der Leyen did not run as a Spitzenkandidaten in 2019, and her surprise appointment by EU leaders infuriated parliament, which approved her by a slim margin. Von der Leyen was announced as the EPP’s leading candidate in early March during a congress in Bucharest where she had no competition. This means she is now an official competitor in the election cycle and is expected to participate in debates, media appearances and political rallies as Spitzenkandidat rather than president.
Anticipating a conflict between a party candidate and an independent president, the Commission earlier this year issued updated guidelines strictly separating the two roles. These include the creation of special social media accounts, an obligation to be available for official duties and a ban on the use of EU resources for the campaign, as well as transparency and declaration of interest requirements.
The EPP is projected to come first in the election, with von der Leyen virtually guaranteed to get the green light from the leaders. Her appointment must then be approved by an absolute majority in parliament. This goal would require von der Leyen to give up her role as EPP candidate and try to build consensus around a common agenda. In their part, other pro-European parties will attack von der Leyen with their binding priorities and push her to accept as many of their core proposals as possible in exchange for their favourable votes.
In the second phase, from 10 June to mid-September, when parliament is expected to hold a confirmation session, Seibert will be seen among von der Leyen’s advisers, onecon he will act as cabinet chief rather than campaign manager.
“The guidelines apply to the European elections. And therefore that is what the staff of the Commission and the members of the College have to comply with. It’s very simple,” Eric Mamer, the Commission’s chief spokesperson, said on Friday.
Mamer, in response to criticism that the so-called legal loopholes were a “key moment” in the cycle, amplified his response and said the “key moment” of the cycle was the June elections, when voters exercise their democratic rights. Not the subsequent stage between the European Council and Parliament, which he described as “more institutionalised” and a “distinct process.”
He further added that no additional rules would be introduced in the second phase of negotiations: “Despite my understanding of your question, the rules that exist apply to this. You may consider that they should apply to something else. My role as a spokesman is to tell you that the rules apply to that context, and then we can see.”
Concerns about Seibert’s appointment emerged the same week that von der Leyen faced growing scrutiny over her choice of Markus Pieper, a German MP from her same party, for the post of SME envoy with a monthly salary of €17,000.
