Preliminary results from the EU election show a victory for Ursula von der Leyen’s EPP group, while the centrist coalition maintains its majority in the EU Parliament. Despite voters moving more towards the right, the center remains strong, according to Ursula von der Leyen. This is evident from the first overall election results. According to the preliminary numbers, the conservative EPP group is poised to become the largest in the EU Parliament with 189 seats. The social democratic group comes in second with 135 seats, while the liberal Renew group gets 80 seats. Despite a significant decline for the Renew group, the three groups together secure a majority with 404 seats out of the necessary 361 to achieve a majority in the upcoming expanded parliament, which will have 720 seats. Ursula von der Leyen points out, however, that even though the centrist coalition can continue, there is cause for concern: “Extremes on the right and left have gained ground. Therefore, the result comes with a big task for the political groups in the center,” she says. “With this strong majority comes the responsibility to build a strong Europe. We need to build the necessary bridges and work with those who share our goals.”
The debate on who Ursula von der Leyen will cooperate with has been intense during the election campaign, with the S&D group and Renew warning against a collaboration with the right-wing ECR group, which includes, among others, Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s party, Italy’s Brothers. Such a collaboration could risk undermining support for von der Leyen, the two centrist groups caution. Despite the prospect of an election victory, the challenge for Ursula von der Leyen and EPP group leader, Manfred Weber, will be to keep the majority together across the center.