The four Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) representing Fianna Fáil have disclosed that they have no plans to vote in favour of Ursula von der Leyen in her attempt to secure a second term as President of the European Commission. Despite initially hinting he could reconsider his opposition if Ms von der Leyen sincerely apologised for her views regarding Israel’s move on Gaza and other matters, Billy Kelleher, Ireland South MEP, reaffirmed he would not endorse her. The same sentiments have been echoed by his Fianna Fáil counterparts – Barry Andrews, Barry Cowen, and Cynthia Ní Mhurchú – who also declined to back Ms von der Leyen, the European People’s Party’s official nominee.
Fianna Fáil belongs to the central Renew Europe Group, also counting Independent Ireland MEPs- Ciarán Mullooly and Michael McNamara amongst its members. This group is championing Ms von der Leyen’s re-election campaign. However, Mr McNamara announced that he wouldn’t back her nomination, while Mr Mullooly withheld his decision until after a scheduled meeting with Ms von der Leyen on Tuesday evening.
The dissention among Fianna Fáil MEPs has sparked a degree of contention within the party hierarchy and coalition allies Fine Gael. Deputy Prime Minister Micheál Martin, expressed his backing for Ms von der Leyen’s nomination as part of his governmental role. Following the European elections, he mentioned immediate plans to discuss the intentions of his four MEPs, but they have held their ground.
Mr Kelleher stated on Monday, “I haven’t taken this decision lightly. However, it’s one I’m at peace with, considering her actions from the 7th of October as well as the lack of decisive action from her commission since 2019 in advocating for the rights of the Palestinians.”
The speaker stated his inability to endorse President von der Leyen’s re-election due to her unwillingness to critique Israel’s behaviour in Gaza. Further, her apparent unwavering backing for prime minister [Binyamin] Netanyahu, who is currently under an arrest warrant by the International Criminal Court, reinforces his disagreement with her. He revealed that despite Ms von der Leyen being aware of the Fianna Fáil delegation’s considerable apprehension regarding her viewpoint on Gaza, she decided to forgo discussing the matter in her extended presentation to their collective, the Renew Europe Group, the previous week.