Hopes that the next European Commission would be equally made up of women and men are floundering after member states put forward an overwhelmingly male list of candidates – defying EU chief Ursula von der Leyen's instructions to submit balanced picks.
With Friday's deadline approaching for European Union members to offer nominees for von der Leyen's 26-person team, 16 of the 21 names known so far are men.
After her re-election in July, the European Commission president had asked states specifically to give her a choice of one male and one female candidate.
Not a single country has done so. As it stands, as few as six women may hold posts in the next EU executive, including von der Leyen herself and the nominee for foreign policy chief, Estonia's outgoing prime minister Kaja Kallas.
The European Women's Lobby, an umbrella group working toward gender equality in the bloc, said the situation was indicative of an "old boys' club" mindset, calling it "beyond embarrassing".
"If member states truly believe only men are fit for these roles or that there are no qualified women in their countries, they're not just out of touch – they're delusional," the group's spokesperson Mirta Baselovic told French news agency AFP.
Equality ambitions
Lina Galvez, chair of the European Parliament's committee on gender equality, said the numbers suggested a clear lack of "political will" from member states that sent a "very bad signal, especially to younger women and girls".
At the root of the situation is a power play between von der Leyen and European capitals that may well back goals like gender parity on paper, but in practice resist having their hands tied in any way.
Von der Leyen made gender equality a priority of her first term, and between them she, Kallas and European Parliament president Roberta Metsola clinched an unprecedented three of four top EU jobs following the bloc's latest parliamentary elections.
But short of a radical shake-up, her ambition for a gender-balanced commission – which steers EU policy on issues of trade to climate and migration – already looks dead in the water.
Standoff looms
Von der Leyen now faces a choice, according to EU law professor Alberto Alemanno: accept the list and put the nominations to parliamentary hearings planned for September and October, or send states back to the drawing board.
Members of the European Parliament won't pull any punches, Alemanno told AFP: "There's a risk that instead of voting down four or five commissioners, they might vote against half of them."
If von der Leyen instead puts her foot down, "she avoids finding herself in a position of weakness," he said. "And it's a chance to assert her independence."
The commission president has the authority to make a stand, according to Alemanno. "The question is more a political one – whether she will choose to exercise that prerogative."
Alternatively, von der Leyen could turn down some of the male candidates presented to her one by one, using the promise of choice portfolios as leverage with individual member states.
'Bare minimum'
The European Women's Lobby said it was counting on the commission chief to "stand firm", calling it her "prerogative and responsibility to ensure that the EU leadership reflects the diversity of its population".
"This isn't a radical ask – it's the bare minimum," spokesperson Baselovic said.
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the European Commission insisted that Von der Leyen "stands by her conviction that in the modern world, we need to have as many women as possible in positions of responsibility".
"She is doing everything in her power in order to ensure that we have a well-balanced college with people who are competent for the role of commissioner, and a college that will include as many women as possible," chief spokesman Eric Mamer told reporters earlier this week.
(with AFP)
