European Parliament to elect new President

The European Parliament (EP) will elect a new president today.

The front-runner in the race is Roberta Metsola of the center-right European People’s Party (EPP), the Parliament’s largest group. Metsola was appointed interim president, following the death of Socialist predecessor President David Sassoli on January 11.

Metsola was elected as a member of Parliament (MEP) in 2013 and became First Vice-President of the EP in 2020. In office, Metsola has pursued protections for media houses against false libel cases. She has also drafted migration policies that promote sharing responsibility across the EU, providing legal paths for asylum, and returning ineligible migrants to their origin countries.

Polish right-wing MEP Kosma Złotowski, Swedish MEP Alice Bah Kuhnke of the Greens, and left-wing Spanish MEP Sira Rego are likewise candidates for the presidency but will struggle to secure enough votes to win.

The Socialists of President Sassoli’s party fear losing influence, as they have no candidate in the election. Expect them to negotiate with Metsola on ousting current EP secretary general Klaus Welle and securing vice-presidencies for Socialist MEPs in exchange for their votes. However, Metsola will likely win without upholding negotiations. Moving forward, expect Socialists to focus on securing wins in the 2024 EP elections.

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