BRUSSELS — It’s not over yet.
European Parliament lawmakers have put Ursula von der Leyen’s 26 commissioner nominees through the wringer for nearly 80 hours and counting, but the ordeal has yet to produce an agreement on the next European Commission, slated to start Dec. 1.
While lawmakers have okayed 19 of von der Leyen’s 26 commissioners, they have also refused to decide on Hungary’s Olivér Várhelyi and the six executive vice presidents (Kaja Kallas, Raffaele Fitto, Roxana Mînzatu, Stéphane Séjourné, Teresa Ribera and Henna Virkkunen).
One day after the Parliament’s political factions failed to agree on approving the six top commissioners, Commission President von der Leyen called a meeting at her HQ to find a way forward.
In attendance were the heads of some of the Parliament’s mainstream groups, including Manfred Weber from von der Leyen’s own European People’s Party, the Socialists’ Iratxe García and Renew’s Valérie Hayer.
In the end it was in vain.
Now what?
A deal is unlikely to materialize before Wednesday, Nov. 20. The EPP, which had made it a precondition for Ribera’s approval, insisted there would be no deal until the Spanish deputy PM appears before her country’s parliament to answer questions about her role as ecological transition minister during Valencia’s deadly recent floods.
That day is also when the heads of all political groups are set to reconvene for a regular meeting behind closed doors.
There are two ways the remaining commissioners could pass. Either — as has been the case for most of the commissioners so far — the groups will need to secure a two-thirds majority in each of the committees that grilled the commissioners from Nov. 4-12. Or — if talks on a package deal go nowhere — the seven commissioners could face risky secret votes where they need a simple majority of MEPs.
The second option is looking increasingly likely, as the Socialists & Democrats have made clear they will not support Fitto and Várhelyi, seemingly eliminating the possibility of a package approach.
Even if all seven do belatedly pass their hearings, there’s still one final hurdle before the Commission can start: The Parliament has penciled in a Nov. 27 vote on the whole package of 27 commissioners, known as the College, to take place at a plenary session in Strasbourg.
If a majority of lawmakers give the Commission the thumbs-up, von der Leyen’s new team will be able to start work Dec. 1 as planned.
If not, the Commission is looking at a 2025 start date.
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