European People’s Party nominates von der Leyen as lead candidate to run another term

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen was officially nominated as lead candidate for European Parliament elections by the European People’s Party, kicking off campaign season

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced she has officially been nominated as the lead candidate for the European People’s Party (EPP) in the European Parliament (EP) elections on June 6-9, initiating the election campaign process.

Von der Leyen was officially nominated at the congress of the EPP, the most significant political group in the EP with a center-right orientation, held in the Romanian capital, Bucharest, for the EP elections to be held in June.

Among the EPP delegates from across Europe who participated in the vote, 499 voted “yes” for von der Leyen as the party’s sole candidate, while 89 voted “no.”

In a statement from her Twitter account, von der Leyen said: “As of today, I am the lead candidate for the European elections on 6-9 June.”

Launches election campaign on X

Sharing her first message on her new X account, @vonderleyen_epp, for the campaign process, von der Leyen said: “As a European citizen, this moment moves me. I thank from the bottom of my heart every EPP member who supports me so decisively. I look forward to fighting alongside this wonderful party for prosperity, security, democracy and our European Union.”

Von der Leyen had announced her candidacy for the presidency of the European Commission on Feb. 19.

A mother of 7, von der Leyen served as the Minister of Family, Women, Elderly, and Youth Affairs from 2005 to 2009, the Minister of Labor and Social Affairs from 2009 to 2013, and the Minister of Defense from 2013 to 2019 in Germany.

She has been serving as the President of the European Commission, the EU’s executive body, since 2019.

Source: Newsroom