Von der Leyen's future to be decided in crunch European Parliament vote
The president of the European Commission needs an absolute majority of lawmakers to back her bid for a second term.
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00:00The future of Ursula von der Leyen will be decided here today in a knife-edge vote.
00:06She wants a second term as European Commission President,
00:09but she needs to secure the support of an absolute majority of MEPs here in the hemicycle in Strasbourg.
00:17Does she have the numbers?
00:19Well, she's counting on the backing of the three pro-European groups at the centre.
00:24Between them they have 401 seats, which should be enough to see von der Leyen sail through.
00:29But we know that there are rebels within those groups likely to vote her down.
00:34It means she's been shopping for votes amongst other groups like the Greens and the European Conservatives and Reformists,
00:41which is the hard-right grouping of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
00:46These two groups are ideologically very far apart,
00:49meaning von der Leyen has been treading an impossible tightrope trying to attract votes from both camps.
00:56But swing MEPs that we've been speaking to here in Strasbourg say they will probably vote for von der Leyen,
01:03even if only to avoid the institutional crisis that would erupt if she fell.
01:09If she doesn't make it, EU leaders would have just one month to propose an alternative candidate,
01:14putting the stability of the European bloc on the line.