Ursula von der Leyen won the support of European Union lawmakers on Thursday for another five-year term as president of the European Commission, the EU’s powerful executive body.
The 720-member European Parliament approved her candidacy with 401 votes in favour, 284 against and 15 abstentions. She needed 361 votes to be elected. Speaking in the European Parliament before the vote, she said:
“Europe now faces a clear choice. A choice which will shape our work for 5 years and define our place in the world for the next 50. The choice comes down to whether we will be shaped by events and the world around us or whether we will come together and build our future for ourselves. And that choice is ours. Europe cannot control dictators and demagogues across the world, but it can choose to protect its own democracy. Europe cannot determine elections across the world, but it can choose to invest in the security and defence of its own continent.”
Ursula von der Leyen presented her programme for the period until 2029. The 31-page document says that the EC’s priority under Ms von der Leyen’s leadership will be to strengthen the union’s security.
The EC head noted that the union’s total spending on defence from 2019 to 2021 increased by only 20% while China increased this figure by 600% and Russia by 300%.
