Once,
twice, three times? Metsola said to eye another term as EP president
No one
has ever run the European Parliament for more than 5 years
Politics
Eddy Wax
Sarantis
Michalopoulos
Euractiv
STRASBOURG,
France – Roberta Metsola is about to discover whether good things really do
come in threes.
Multiple
sources have told Euractiv that the European Parliament president and her
centre-right allies see an opening to take advantage of the weakness of the
centre-left and secure an unprecedented third term.
Under a
purported gentleman’s agreement between Metsola’s European People’s Party (EPP)
and the socialists, the latter would have the right to nominate the next
Parliament president for a 2.5 year term in early 2027.
But given
the waning fortunes of the socialists, who have been battered at ballot boxes
across Europe of late, the EPP could field Metsola for a third term instead. To
soften the blow to the socialists, the EPP could allow António Costa, the
socialist president of the European Council, to remain in office for a full
five year term, according to sources familiar with the matter.
Manfred
the Machiavellian
If the
scheme sounds slightly Machiavellian, that’s because the EU’s ultimate
powerbroker, EPP chief Manfred Weber, is at the centre of it.
Weber is
strongly backing Metsola’s re-election in order to maintain his grip on the EPP
Group leadership, according to one well-placed source.
“If
Metsola leaves the Parliament, where would she go?” the source asked. “The only
available role would be leading the EPP Group, and there’s no chance Weber
gives that up.”
Weber, a
German, has chaired the EPP parliamentary group for more than a decade and held
the presidency of the EPP itself since 2022. His dual roles continue to shape
the strategic direction within Europe’s largest political family.
Metsola,
who decided to remain in EU politics when her centre-right Maltese party was
searching for a new leader earlier this year, is “on full campaign mode,”
according to one EU official.
“All the
signs are aiming at it,” said one MEP from the Socialist and Democrats
group.
Metsola – popular across the house including in
the ECR and far right – has been
presenting herself as more of a unity candidate. She has also raised the
profile of the Parliament on international issues, particularly when it comes
to supporting Ukraine.
Flirting
with the far right?
Parliament
watchers have also seen signs that Metsola is preparing the ground to shift to
the right. She granted the far-right a moment of silence for Charlie Kirk, the
murdered MAGA activist, by bundling it with other topics, such as the
Manchester antisemitic terror attack. And she also did not stop the Patriots
from imposing a debate about the danger that migrants pose to women and
children.
The risk
is that another Metsola run would enrage the socialists, who feel entitled to
the position under an apparent arrangement with the EPP. Reneging on the
powersharing deal – long a tradition in the institution – could damage the
parliament’s internal centrist power balance, one diplomat warned, especially
if Metsola were to be carried on a right-to-far-right platform.
“Having
the president elected by an EPP-far right majority would have major political
repercussions,” said Richard Corbett, a former S&D lawmaker who is an
expert on Parliament. He said his former group would likely “vehemently
protest.”
Neither
Weber, Metsola or Costa’s offices responded to requests for comment.
(mk)
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