Ursula von der Leyen Survives No-Confidence Vote
FRANCE – The EU Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen on Thursday survived a no-confidence vote in the European Parliament despite of a unified front by far-right and far-left lawmakers.
During the plenary sitting in Strasbourg, neither motion reached the two-thirds majority required to pass, or the minimum 361 votes in favor.
The far-right motion saw 378 MEPs vote against it, 179 in support, and 37 abstaining. The far-left motion recorded 383 votes against, 133 in favor, and 78 abstentions.
The motions, filed last month by the far-right Patriots for Europe group and the left-wing The Left group, marked the first time two no-confidence motions were launched simultaneously in the Parliament.
Patriots’s leader Jordan Bardella criticized von der Leyen’s US and Mercosur trade deals, while Left’s co-chair Manon Aubry accused the commission of inaction over Israel’s actions in Gaza.
Centrist and moderate MEPs rallied behind von der Leyen during a plenary debate on Monday, warning that unseating her at this stage could further destabilize the European Union.
In a statement on the US social media company X, von der Leyen thanked lawmakers for their support, saying the commission “will keep working closely with the European Parliament to tackle Europe’s challenges.”
“I deeply appreciate the strong support received today,” she wrote.
The Left group criticized the decision, saying it “fails to reflect public sentiment” and highlighted the commission’s “deep unpopularity across the Union.”
Aubry said they regret many Socialists and Greens did not support the motion, despite alleged delays in human rights and climate legislation, adding: “Nevertheless, this motion of censure sends a strong message to the von der Leyen Commission: we will not allow democracy to be trampled on, our sovereignty to be surrendered, or international law to be violated.”
This is von der Leyen‘s second defense against a no-confidence motion this year. In July, a far-right attempt failed with 175 votes in favor, 360 against, and 18 abstentions.
