Many people in Brussels will be familiar with him – but otherwise Nicolas Schmit is relatively unknown in Europe. The Social Democrat wants to be in the highest office in the EU. Does he have a chance?
Do you know Nicolas Schmit? No? Don’t worry, you’re probably not the only one. Nevertheless, the Luxembourger has the goal of taking over the office of Commission President – which is currently held by the German Ursula von der Leyen.
The European Social Democratic Party (PES) named Schmit its top candidate for the June elections in Rome at the weekend. This begins the hot phase of the election campaign for the European Social Democrats.
Nicolas Schmit, an expert on Brussels
This year’s European elections are considered by many to be the most important in decades, if not since the Union was founded. And for the Social Democrats, who make up the second largest group in the European Parliament after the European People’s Party (EPP), it is about nothing less than the “soul of Europe”, which is in danger, as Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez made clear to the delegates. Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD), who took part in the congress, also warned in a speech against “right-wing populists who are campaigning against our united Europe and its basic values” and are on the rise in democracies around the world.
And Schmit should fix it. Although his name is unknown to many Europeans, the Luxembourger is considered an expert in Brussels politics. He has decades of experience in government offices and the EU. He is currently the Labor Commissioner, so he looks after workers in the EU, minimum wages and working conditions.
“Nicolas Schmit is very popular in the European trade union world and also in the social democratic movements, for which social issues are central,” said Marc Angel, Vice President of the EU Parliament, to the “Luxemburger Wort” in November.
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Schmit, now 70, was a member of the Luxembourg State Council from 1991 to 2004. His EU career began a year earlier, when he became counselor at the Luxembourg Permanent Mission to the European Union in Brussels in 1990. From 1998 to 2004 he was even the principality’s ambassador and permanent representative to the EU. For the Luxembourg government, he was involved, among other things, in the negotiations on the Maastricht and Nice Treaties.
The economist, who holds a doctorate, then returned to Luxembourg politics and initially became Assistant Minister for Foreign Affairs and Immigration, then Minister for Labor, Employment and Immigration as well as for the Social and Solidarity Economy. In 2019 he moved to the European Parliament and the EU Commission. There he was significantly involved in the development of a 100 billion euro program for short-time work regulations during the Corona crisis.
Schmit is expected to run against his current boss, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen (CDU). She could be elected as the top candidate at the EPP congress in Bucharest in the coming days.
Schmit wants a greener and more social EU
The election of the top candidate in the EU dates back to the 2014 European elections. Jean-Claude Juncker – also from Luxembourg – ran against the SPD man Martin Schulz. This was intended to counteract disillusionment with politics and the impression that the will of the voters does not play a role. In the end, the member states decide on a proposal from the EU Council President for the election of the Commission President. The EU Parliament must then confirm this. In the best case scenario, the winner of the top candidates will also become President of the Commission.
Schmit has announced that he will fight resolutely for a united Europe. Its main goal is to defend European values and counteract the shift to the right in the EU. He described parties such as the AfD, the Fratelli d’Italia and the Rassemblement National in France as “poison” for democracy.
In Rome, Schmit emphasized that he wanted respect instead of hate. The right has “no project for Europe”: “The best answer to the extreme right is our vision and our project for Europe, so that every citizen and every child can have a better life.” To this end, he also wants to promote climate protection and at the same time not lose sight of social issues: “We will fight for a Green Deal with a red heart,” he assured.
An election campaign with no chance of success?
At the same time, he emphasized the importance of a European security and defense policy: “We Europeans must take matters into our own hands.” In view of the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine, he emphasizes that the Ukrainians will never be abandoned.
The Social Democrat would like to rely on European youth to achieve this. He wants to work for a Europe that is attractive to young people and appeals to them better: “Until recently, we failed to reach young people in particular when we presented Europe as a peace project.”
Despite the combative words, the European Social Democrats are unlikely to make any gains – and Schmit will be in a losing battle. At least that’s what the current surveys suggest. Compared to the 2019 European elections, they are likely to suffer losses. The EPP is currently in the lead, but EU-critical and right-wing parties are on the rise in some countries, such as the AfD.
Another problem for Schmit is that both he and von der Leyen have a similar focus on Europe’s security. Von der Leyen wants more defense for the continent, but also protection against poverty and disease and the fight against corruption. The Social Democrats have similar programmatic goals; the clear demarcation is missing.
After the European elections in June, the position of EU Commission President must be filled. As a rule, a candidate from the European party family that performed best in the elections is nominated. Due to the EPP’s clear lead and von der Leyen’s popularity and good reputation, there is a good chance that she can remain president. Nevertheless, Schmit also has other commission positions in mind for the PES, such as economics, climate protection and social affairs. He currently holds the latter position. If there were more than just that – there would certainly be no shortage of challenges for Schmit.
Sources: news agencies AFP and DPA, Profile of Nicolas Schmit at the European Commission, Government of Luxembourg, S&D Group in the European Parliament, “Euractiv”, “Euractiv” (2), “Forward”, Federal Agency for Civic Education, European Commission, Euronews, tagesschau.de