In contrast, there are only five women (including von der Leyen herself) – or six if you include Spain’s likely candidate Teresa Ribera, who has not yet been officially nominated.
Two further moves on Thursday were decisive: Romania confirmed its intention to nominate Victor Negrescu and Luxembourg proposed Christophe Hansen for the coveted post. If Denmark and Italy follow suit and appoint men, as widely expected, two-thirds of the 27 EU commissioners would likely be male.
The heads of state and government of the EU countries have rejected von der Leyen’s request for an election and have instead defiantly given her a fait accompli and left the Commission President almost powerless.
Personalities such as Irish Prime Minister Simon Harris have reminded von der Leyen that under the EU treaties they are only obliged to propose a single name to Brussels.
The only lever that von der Leyen can use to counteract this is the portfolio that she assigns to the two. But there are too many men for them all to be given weak portfolios.
The gender balance could still change, however. The entire 27-member College of Commissioners must be confirmed in a single vote by the European Parliament after all Commissioners except von der Leyen are cross-examined by MEPs in the autumn. This raises the possibility that some male candidates could be rejected.
