The application of the non-binding procedure has so far been inconsistent.

The Spitzenkandidaten process, or lead candidate process, is a political process based on European political parties nominating one or more persons to lead their respective campaigns before the European elections and to support them as President of the European Commission if they win the elections. The procedure was applied for the first time in 2014, but is not enshrined in the treaties, thus being not legally binding.

Success and failure of the lead candidate process

The idea behind the lead candidate process has been to make the selection process for the President of the European Commission more transparent and easier to understand. At the same time, it can be argued that the President of the European Commission gains democratic legitimacy in this way, as voters are given the opportunity to influence the choice of the head of the EU executive.

However, the lead candidate process has so far only been implemented unreliably. In 2014, Jean-Claude Juncker actually became President of the European Commission after being nominated as the lead candidate of the European People's Party (EPP), which won the most votes. However, the procedure was not followed in the last European elections in 2019: Instead of Manfred Weber, the lead candidate of the EPP - which once again became the strongest party - Ursula von der Leyen became President of the European Commission without having been the lead candidate.

The lead candidates for 2024

Not all European parties support the lead candidate process. For example, the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) and the Identity and Democracy Party (IDP) are not nominating any candidates. The EPP will nominate a lead candidate at its party congress on 6 and 7 March 2024, while the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) will nominate a lead candidate on 20 and 21 March. The Party of European Socialists (PES) will nominate candidates on 1 and 2 March, but there was only one candidate by the application deadline on 17 January 2024, the current Luxembourg EU Commissioner for Jobs and Social Rights, Nicolas Schmit. His nomination at the party congress can therefore be considered certain.

The lead candidate process as part of an EU electoral reform

The European Parliament is in favour of making the lead candidate process mandatory. Accordingly, the anchoring of the system is part of the Resolution of the European Parliament of 3 May 2022, which aims to revise the rules on European elections with the objective of standardisation. In this resolution, the European Parliament links the lead candidate process with the demand for EU-wide lists, through which - in addition to the existing national constituencies - 28 additional MEPs are to be elected and which are to be headed by the respective candidate for the Presidency of the European Commission.

However, no agreement has yet been reached on these proposals in the Council of the European Union, which is why the proposals will not be applied in the 2024 European elections.