The European Commission, led by President Ursula von der Leyen, has successfully navigated a vote of no confidence brought against it in the European Parliament.
The motion, submitted by Romanian MEP Gheorghe Piperea from the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) group, took place Thursday in Strasbourg. While 175 members of parliament voted in favour of the proposal, it fell significantly short of the two-thirds majority required for success. A total of 360 parliamentarians voted against the motion and 18 abstained.
Prior to the vote, observers widely anticipated that the motion would not garner enough support to unseat the Commission. The broad consensus within the European Parliament favoured against supporting a motion initiated by a far-right faction. The proposal cited concerns over a perceived lack of transparency regarding the procurement of vaccines during the COVID-19 pandemic as a key justification. The outcome maintains the Commission’s current mandate.