15:53 17 July 2019
Ursula von der Leyen becomes head of EC
Ursula von der Leyen, Defense Minister from Germany, was officially elected by the European Parliament as the president of the European Commission. She will wield the greatest power among all the highest officials of the European Union. 383 MEPs voted for the German candidacy. There were 327 against and 22 Members abstained.
Von der Leyen is the first person from Germany in this position since 1967, when the first chairman of the EC Walter Hallstein took office, and also the first woman at the head of the EC in history.
