It is expected that on Tuesday von der Leyen will stand for the presidency of the European Commission. To be able to take this position, her candidacy will have to be approved by the European Parliament.

According to von der Leyen, she is going to resign as Defense Minister on Wednesday, July 17, regardless of whether she will be elected to the post of Chairman of the European Commission.

“I want to gain the trust of the European Parliament. Regardless of the outcome of the vote, I’m going on Wednesday to resign the Minister of Defense to send all my forces to the service of Europe, — said the politician on her Twitter page. — Over the years I have spent with the Bundeswehr, I feel a deep sense of gratitude.”

The vote on the candidate von der Leyen should be held in Brussels on July 16 at 18.00. To win she will need to enlist the support of at least 374 of 747 deputies.

In early July 2019, the European Council unexpectedly proposed the candidacy of Ursula von der Leyen, who, like German Chancellor Angela Merkel, is a member of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU), for the post of head of the European Commission. Up to this point, the most likely candidates for this position were considered a colleague of von der Leyen on the CDU Marcus Weber and the social Democrat from the Netherlands Frans Timmermans.