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President of the European Commission

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President of the European Commission
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Emblem of the commission
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Flag of Europe
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Incumbent
Ursula von der Leyen
since 1 December 2019
European Commission
StylePresident[1]
StatusHead of an Institution
Member of
Reports to
ResidenceBerlaymont building
SeatBrussels, Belgium
NominatorEuropean Council
AppointerEuropean Parliament
Term lengthFive years, renewable
Constituting instrumentTreaties of the European Union
Formation1 January 1958
First holderWalter Hallstein
DeputyFirst Vice-President of the European Commission
Salary€306,655 annually[2]
Websiteec.europa.eu

The President of the European Commission is the head of the European Commission. It is the executive branch of the European Union. The President of the Commission leads a cabinet of Commissioners. The President is chosen by the Council and Parliament, and decides (with each country) who the other members are and what they do.

Background

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The President of the Commission also represents the EU abroad, together with the President of the European Council and the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy.

The post was established in 1958. Each new President is nominated by the European Council and formally elected by the European Parliament, for a five-year term.

The current President is Ursula von der Leyen, who took office on 1st December 2019. She is a member of the European People's Party (EPP) and is the former minister of defence of Germany.

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Headquarters of the European Commission in Brussels (Berlaymont building)

List of presidents

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Commission of the European Economic Community (1958–1967)

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Portrait Name
(birth–death)		 Term of office Tenure Commission Party Group Country
Image Walter Hallstein
(1901–1982)		 1 January 1958 5 July 1967 9 years, 185 days Hallestein CDU CD Image West Germany

Commission of the European Communities (1967–2009) and European Commission (2009–present)

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Parties

  European People's Party   ALDE Party/ELDR Party   Party of European Socialists   European Progressive Democrats

Portrait Name
(birth–death)		 Term of office Tenure Commission Party Group Country Electoral mandate
Image Jean Rey
(1902–1983)		 5 July 1967 1 July 1970 2 years, 361 days Rey PRL LIB Image Belgium –
Image Franco Maria Malfatti
(1927–1991)		 1 July 1970 1 March 1972 1 year, 244 days Malfatti DC CD Image Italy –
Image Sicco Mansholt
(1908–1995)		 1 March 1972 5 January 1973 310 days Mansholt PvdA SOC Image Netherlands –
Image François-Xavier Ortoli
(1925–2007)		 5 January 1973 5 January 1977 4 years Ortoli UDR EPD Image France –
Image Roy Jenkins
(1920–2003)		 5 January 1977 19 January 1981 4 years, 14 days Jenkins Lab SOC Image United Kingdom 1979
Image Gaston Thorn
(1928–2007)		 19 January 1981 6 January 1985 3 years, 353 days Thorn DP LD Image Luxembourg
Image Jacques Delors
(1925–2023)		 6 January 1985 24 January 1995 10 years, 18 days Delors PS SOC Image France 1984
1989
Image Jacques Santer
(born 1937)		 24 January 1995 15 March 1999[a] 4 years, 50 days Santer CSV EPP Image Luxembourg 1994
Image Manuel Marín (interim)
(1949–2017)		 15 March 1999 17 September 1999 186 days Santer PSOE SOC Image Spain
Image Romano Prodi
(born 1939)		 17 September 1999 22 November 2004 5 years, 66 days Prodi Dem ELDR Image Italy 1999
Image José Manuel Barroso
(born 1956)		 22 November 2004 1 November 2014 9 years, 344 days Barroso PSD EPP Image Portugal 2004
2009
Image Jean-Claude Juncker
(born 1954)		 1 November 2014 30 November 2019 5 years, 29 days Juncker CSV EPP Image Luxembourg 2014
Image Ursula von der Leyen
(born 1958)		 1 December 2019 Incumbent 6 years, 140 days von der Leyen CDU EPP Image Germany 2019

Notes

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  1. ↑ Santer resigned before his mandate expired. His commission served in caretaker capacity under Marín till September. Replaced by Prodi, who completed Santer's mandate to 22 January 2000, when they were reappointed on their own mandate.

References

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  1. ↑ English Style Guide: A handbook for authors and translators in the European Commission (PDF) (8 ed.). European Commission. October 2019. p. 119. Retrieved 2 December 2019.
  2. ↑ "European Commission salaries" (PDF). European Voice (Supplement: The Companion to the European Commission). Politico: 56. February 2015. Retrieved 19 June 2015.

Other websites

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