“Q“Dear António Costa, it is good to meet in Strasbourg and discuss the many challenges we face as a Union”, stressed Ursula von der Leyen in a note on the social network X, accompanied by a photo with the former Portuguese Prime Minister.
António Costa traveled to Strasbourg, France, today to express his support for the German in her bid for re-election as President of the European Commission, the vote for which takes place on Thursday.
In a brief statement to Portuguese journalists, the former Portuguese Prime Minister justified his trip to Strasbourg, on the first day of the inaugural plenary session of the 10th legislature of the European Parliament, firstly, to congratulate Maltese politician Roberta Metsola on her re-election as President of the European Assembly, with a “historic and very clear result”.
“And on the other hand, I would also like to welcome the socialist group, given that I was elected President of the European Council in that capacity, and also, obviously, express my support for the election of President Ursula von der Leyen next Thursday and hope that everything goes well so that we can have a majority that works in the service of citizens and Europe,” added the former Portuguese leader, after a meeting with Metsola.
António Costa was elected at the end of June by the Heads of State and Government of the European Union (EU) as President of the European Council for a two-and-a-half-year term, which begins on December 1, 2024.
The first session of the new European Parliament, resulting from the European elections in June, began with the vote for the presidency of the assembly, with Metsola, from the European People’s Party (EPP), and the candidate of the European Left, Irene Montero, running for office.
In the first round, Metsola was re-elected in office until January 2027 with a majority of 562 votes (out of 623 valid votes).
On the penultimate day of this inaugural plenary session, taking place in Strasbourg, the vote will take place to reappoint Ursula von der Leyen as leader of the EU executive.
To be re-elected to the position, the German needs at least 361 votes in favor of MEPs, in a vote that takes place after the European Council’s proposal made at the end of June.
With greater party fragmentation in the European Parliament, her reappointment to the post (in 2019 she was elected without being a candidate) is not yet guaranteed and, in fact, several parliamentarians have threatened not to support German policy, claiming that Ursula von der Leyen is too closely linked to the conservative wing or criticizing her stance on the externalization of EU migration policies and certain setbacks in climate targets.
If the name of the person responsible does not obtain the required majority, the President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, will have to invite the European Council to present another name within a month, for a new vote.
Following the June elections and recent party changes in the European Parliament, the EPP is the group with the most seats (188), followed by the Socialists (136) and the new far-right political family Patriots for Europe (84).
According to the most recent distribution of seats in the European assembly, the Conservatives and Reformists occupy 78 seats, the Liberals a total of 77, followed by the Greens (53) and the Left (46).
Read Also: Costa in Strasbourg to congratulate Metsola and support Von der Leyen
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Source: https://www.noticiasaominuto.com/pais/2599440/von-der-leyen-e-costa-discutiram-os-muitos-desafios-que-ue-enfrenta
