Episode 4: The Commission
Who picks it, what it does and who keeps it in check
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Ursula von der Leyen has never been on the ballot in a European election. And yet she's been head of the European Commission since 2019. How does that work?
Here's how: after every European election, the heads of state and government in the European Council propose someone. They're supposed to take the election result into account. Then Parliament votes. The candidate needs a majority of all MEPs, so 361 votes. In 2024, von der Leyen got 401.
Then the team joins in: each country proposes one person, and the President hands out the jobs: climate, trade, competition and so on. But first, everyone has to face Parliament in a public hearing, three hours long. A kind of job interview. And Parliament does fail people. In 2019, it stopped three. Finally, Parliament votes on the whole team. Only then can they get started.
Its most important job: the Commission proposes almost all EU laws. That's called the right of initiative. The ideas come from everywhere: from Parliament, from governments, from companies, associations and citizens. But the Commission writes the proposal.
Second, the Commission makes sure that every country sticks to EU law. If one doesn't, it first sends a letter, then a sterner one. And if that doesn't help, it takes the country to the European Court of Justice. That's why it's also called the guardian of the treaties.
The Commission also takes on global giants. Anyone who abuses their market power has to pay. Google, for example: a fine of 2.4 billion euros for favouring its own price comparison service in search results. The Court upheld it in 2024.
And who keeps an eye on the Commission? Parliament. It can ask questions, demand reports, and with a two-thirds majority even remove the entire Commission. That has never happened. But in 1999, a Commission resigned before it came to that.
Remember: the Commission proposes and keeps watch. Others have to decide: Parliament and the Council.
And that's where it gets tricky again, because there's more than one council. Which one does what, and how do 27 countries actually vote? We'll find out in episode five.
Episode 5: The councils
And how 27 countries vote
One of the three councils isn't even part of the EU. That leaves two. And how do 27 countries agree on anything without arguing forever?
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Now go and see who votes how.
In the European Parliament, almost every important vote is recorded by name. On openrcv.eu you can see how your MEPs voted.
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