The ‘Geopolitical Commission’: An End of Term Review
Journal: JCMS Journal of Common Market Studies
Year: 2024

When, in November 2019, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen declared that hers would be a ‘geopolitical Commission’ (2019b), she was not only seeking to differentiate her incoming administration from that of her predecessor. She was also making a bold gambit. Without the powerful mandate associated with the election through the Spitzenkandidaten process, voted into office by a slender majority, and with no substantial experience at the European Union (EU) level, the 13th and first female P