Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1443447
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 16 JANUARY 2022 10 NICOLE MEILAK AS the election for a new pres- ident in the European Parlia- ment, Roberta Metsola is in- creasingly being touted as the MEP to succeed the late David Sassoli for the House presidency. Roberta Metsola faces com- petition from three other can- didates – the Greens candidate Alice Bah Kuhnke, the Left's Sira Rego, and ECR's Kosma Zlo- towski. While a four-horse race might conjure expectations of a hot- ly-contested battle for the pres- idency, the election itself could turn out to be a very quick affair. The first point of departure is the fact that the second-largest group in the EP, the socialist S&D, does not have a candidate. It is likely to respect the 2019 power-sharing deal between so- cialists, liberals Renew, and the centre-right EPP, that elected Italian socialist David Sassoli to the presidency. Without a candidate, the S&D might not be expected to upset what is essentially a power-shar- ing coalition between the three main groups. With liberals Renew likely to follow the EPP's lead – former Belgian PM Charles Michel, a Renew member, is the head of the European Council as part of the power-sharing pact – this could mean that Metsola could be elected by a simple majority in the first or second ballot. Not all MEPs could follow this lead. French MEPs have been irked by the prospect of an an- ti-choice female president of the EP – this was a point raised by French MEP Bernard Guetta in a Renew meeting with Metsola. Then again, half the French del- egation from Emanuel Macron's En Marche party, also within Renew, are likely to follow the French President's wishes to re- spect the 2019 deal. Metsola first made histo- ry when she was elected First Vice-President of the European Parliament in November 2020, being the first Maltese person to hold the position. The institutional role, which is not a partisan one, holds several high-level responsibilities relat- ed to the external representation of the European Parliament, the negotiation of legislation with the European Commission and the European Council. It meant that she would sup- port and replace the President of the European Parliament in first instance should he be absent or unavailable to discharge his du- ties, including chairing plenary sittings or representing Parlia- ment at specific ceremonies. Less than a year later, she was catapulted on a trajectory to clinch the EP presidency. When illness struck David Sassoli from appearing for the State of the EU address, Metsola stepped in to preside over the important sit- ting. After this, EPP president and German MEP Manfred Weber decided that he would forego a bid for the EP presidency, real- ising that MEPs might squirm at the notion of so much insti- tutional power being held in German hands – Weber as head of the EP, and Ursula von der Leyen as head of the European Commission. Still, Metsola's anti-abortion voting record has been the big- gest point of contention among MEPs. It was Bernard Guetta (brother to the world-famous DJ...) who was said to have "set the scene" during an internal meeting with centrist MEPs from the Renew Group, by an- nouncing that he would not vote for Metsola, which he said could be interpreted as a regression of women's rights. The matter even forced a com- ment from French president Emanuel Macron himself, who was questioned on the issue by journalists during a presentation of his electoral programme. Metsola has told MaltaToday that if elected as President of the European Parliament, she would respect the majority opinions of the House – whether that be a pro-choice or pro-life opinion. "On sexual and reproductive health and rights, the position Metsola on cusp of EP presidency as elections get underway Malta's Roberta Metsola is the frontrunner in the 18 January election for European Parliament president, with no candidate from the S&D group and other political blocs putting forward feminist alternatives to contrast 'anti-choice' candidate S&D - 145 MEPs Socialists & Democrats The late David Sassoli was elected EP president in 2019 in a power-sharing deal between the EPP, S&D and Renew. Towards the end of 2021, a renewed candidature was mooted. But as illness overtook the Italian MEP, the socialists tempered their ambitions to challenge the EPP's pretensions to take over the second half of the legisla- ture as part of the 2019 deal. The indications are that there is no compelling reason to force some division in the selection of Metsola, even though pro- choice voices might probably not lend their support GUE-NGL - 39 MEPs European Left Europe's far-left has its candidate, Sira Rego, a feminist 'anti-system' alternative, which however is expected to fall at the first round of voting Election procedure The president is elected to the office for a renewable period of two and a half years. Dur- ing each legislative term, a first election is normally held in July, immediately after the election of a new Parliament. A second mid-term election is held two and a half years later, in January. Usually, at the sitting designat- ed to elect the President for the mid-term election, the proce- dure is chaired by the outgoing President, or by one of the out- going Vice-Presidents in order of precedence. But this year's election is suis generis, as a sit- ting President has never died in the middle of their term. The situation becomes all the more unclear as the First Vice and in- terim President, which is Rob- erta Metsola, is also contesting the election. The president is elected by se- cret ballot from a list of nomi- nees proposed by the different political groups. The candi- dates are put forward before each round of the ballot, of which there can only be four rounds. Once the candidates are put forward, the person chairing the plenary announc- es the nominees. To secure the presidency, a candidate must win an abso- lute majority of the votes cast, that is 50%+1. This can be less than the absolute majority of all MEPs because abstentions and spoilt or blank votes are not counted. There can be any number of candidates during the first three rounds of voting, and no candidates are eliminated as the rounds go on. But since there can only be four rounds of voting, the fourth and final ballot is con- fined to the two candidates who obtained the highest number of votes in the third round. The candidate with the largest number of votes wins the presidency. This article is part of a content series called Ewropej. This is a multi-newsroom initiative part-funded by the European Parliament to bring the work of the EP closer to the citizens of Malta and keep them informed about matters that affect their daily lives. This article reflects only the author's view. The European Parliament is not responsible for any use that may be made of the information it contains