Von der Leyen’s Commission not winning most European hearts and minds, polling suggests
The exclusive polling for Euronews by Ipsos reveals that a majority of voters (63%) either view the Commission’s work negatively or have no opinion, suggesting the EU executive is not cutting through to most Europeans.
Of a sample of 26,000 EU citizens in 18 member states, 37% said they viewed the work of von der Leyen’s Commission positively, while 31% said they see it negatively and 32% didn’t know.
It comes two months before some 370 million eligible voters will elect new members to the European Parliament, sparking a race to lead the Commission, the EU’s powerful executive branch which holds sweeping powers to legislate on a range of issues including tech, healthcare and social rights.
Von der Leyen, who was parachuted to the role of Commission President in 2019 despite not officially running for the role, is currently tipped to secure a second five-year term after the European People’s Party (EPP) named her as its lead candidate.
To secure that second term, she will need to be nominated by EU leaders and secure majority support in the newly-elected European Parliament, a test she passed by a slim margin of just nine votes back in 2019.
But while she has built a robust reputation among political circles, von der Leyen has been criticised for her scarce public appearances and reluctance to go out into the streets to meet voters, even on the campaign trail.
The result is low perception of her executive across a vast majority of member states. A majority of survey respondents had a positive view of her Commission in just three of the member states surveyed: Portugal (61%), Denmark (54%) and Spain (54%).
The approval rating plunges to a low of just 18% in France, one of the EU’s founding members, where 36% view the Commission’s work negatively and 46% don’t know.
