Ursula von der Leyen is likely to miss her goal of forming a gender-balanced leadership team at the European Commission, as EU governments have dismissed her request to propose both male and female candidates.
The first female president of the EU executive, who was re-elected for a historic second term last month, is currently assembling her team of commissioners. Similar to government ministers, these senior EU officials manage the bloc’s policies on climate, technology, and industry, negotiate trade agreements, enforce European law, distribute billions in grants, and draft the EU budget.
After her re-election, von der Leyen stated that she aimed for “an equal share of men and women” in the leadership team. However, her objective is now at risk after member states ignored her request to nominate two candidates, one man and one woman.
As of the 30 August deadline for submitting names to Brussels, 14 men and five women have been proposed as candidates, based on an analysis of government announcements and local media reports. Among the seven countries that have not yet finalized their nominations, two (Lithuania and Romania) are expected to confirm male candidates soon, while two others (Belgium and Denmark) are widely expected to propose male candidates. In two additional countries (Italy and Portugal), men are the leading candidates, while women are favored in Bulgaria.
In the worst-case scenario, the next commission—expected to take office in December—could have only 22% or 26% female representation (including von der Leyen herself), a lower gender balance than the previous commission, which started in 2019 with 44% female representation.
Lina Gálvez, chair of the European Parliament’s gender equality committee, urged von der Leyen to demand that EU governments provide female candidates. “We never achieve anything without moving boundaries, without applying pressure,” she told. “Especially now, when anti-gender movements are at the core of fascist, anti-democratic movements… we cannot show that our commitment to gender equality is weak.”
Complicating von der Leyen’s efforts is an exemption that allows governments to avoid proposing female candidates if they are renominating their current commissioner. Most of those being renominated are men, such as Thierry Breton of France, who recently clashed with tech mogul Elon Musk, and Maroš Šefčovič, a commission vice-president with a broad portfolio including EU-UK relations. Latvia’s Valdis Dombrovskis, the Netherlands’ Wopke Hoekstra, and Hungary’s Oliver Várhelyi are also set to return to Brussels. Dubravka Šuica, a former Croatian mayor responsible for demography policy, is the only woman nominated to return.
This exemption has sparked resentment. “Why should we nominate a woman again when our ideal candidate is a man, and Slovakia can nominate Šefčovič for a fifth time?” said one EU diplomat, exaggerating slightly for effect. Slovakia, which has never had a female commissioner, has nominated Šefčovič for a fourth term.
Several EU leaders have indicated they have no intention of nominating a woman, as there is no legal obligation to do so. “Respectfully and in accordance with the treaties, we have decided to send one name,” Ireland’s Prime Minister, Simon Harris, said in June, confirming his intention to propose Finance Minister Michael McGrath.
The request for two candidates was not well received in many EU capitals, as the coveted role of EU commissioner is also part of complex negotiations between governing parties and heads of state. Lithuania’s Prime Minister, Ingrida Šimonytė, described her country’s process this week as “baroquely complex,” as her government announced its intention to send one of her predecessors, Andrius Kubilius, to Brussels after a contentious battle for the position.
Governments that ignored von der Leyen’s call for gender balance could see their candidates assigned less desirable portfolios, rather than the “big economic jobs” many governments are vying for. In previous years, governments that disappointed the commission had their candidates placed in charge of multilingualism, or education and culture.
“Every commissioner wants resources, money [to spend on policies], power, and competence, and it’s not possible for all of them,” said Sophia Russack of the Centre for European Policy Studies in Brussels. “There are not 27 or 26 important portfolios,” Russack added, suggesting this could be used as leverage—“either you send me a woman or you get one of those portfolios that nobody wants.”
A leadership team dominated by men would be a significant setback for the EU’s gender equality strategy, which in 2020 called for “gender balance of 50% at all levels of [Commission] management by the end of 2024.”
Insiders suggest that a less gender-balanced commission increases the likelihood of commissioner candidates being rejected by the European Parliament. All nominees must appear before MEP committees before the assembly votes on whether to approve the entire commission. “Some candidates will be targeted over their suitability and the fact that their government did not bother to propose a woman,” a second EU diplomat said.
A European Commission spokesperson declined to comment on the candidates and gender balance.
