EU's Charles Michel to quit Council presidency, run as MEP
January 7, 2024
European Council President Charles Michel has announced he intends to run in the European Parliament elections scheduled for June, meaning he would then have to vacate his current post if he wins a seat as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP).
The Belgian politician announced his intentions to Belgian media outlets on Sunday. He said European Union leaders could discuss his successor at the end of June or beginning of August.
"Four years after starting my term as a European leader, it's my responsibility to give an account of my work these past years, and to propose a project for Europe's future," the former Belgian prime minister was reported as saying. "It is relatively easy to arrange the succession."
A change in EU leadership
The EU's summer elections are expected to bring about new leaders for the bloc, as it goes through transformative times, overshadowed by Russia's war on Ukraine and its repercussions on the continent and the rest of the world.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has yet to announce whether she intends to seek a second term in office. The German politician and former defense minister was appointed in 2019, like Michel.
Michel said he planned to campaign for the parliament at the head of the list of the liberal Belgian Reformist Movement (MR) party. He formerly served as president of said party.
Given he will be the bloc's top candidate, it's highly likely he should claim a seat and therefore leave his post.
That could leave European leaders seeking both a new head of its executive, the European Commission, and the European Council — which is the influential format where the 27 domestic leaders of EU member states meet and negotiate.
Assigning these positions can be a difficult process of compromise and horse trading, with von der Leyen's 2019 appointment only following a lengthy standoff after the previous European Parliament elections.
"The European project is at a crossroads, and there is a need to boost the legitimacy of European democracy," he said.
Michel said he aimed to play an active role: "I would like to be part of the team of those building the European project and am putting myself forward to continue to serve it."
rmt/msh (AFP, dpa)