Ursula von der Leyen
A survey conducted by the polling agency Public First in the three largest EU countries (Germany, France and Spain) showed that the President of the European Commission faces not so much outright disapproval as indifference and low name recognition.
According to Politico, “Ursula von der Leyen has failed to win the hearts and minds of EU citizens — if they even know who she is.” Most Europeans either view her work neutrally or do not follow Brussels’ politics at all — for example, only around 10 per cent expressed an intention to watch her annual ‘State of the Union’ address.
The survey results point to a shift
In a Politico poll conducted by Public First in the three largest EU countries, only around one-fifth of respondents in Germany and Spain said the European Commission President was doing a good job; in France, just 12 per cent said the same.
Almost one in three respondents in Spain and France, as well as 45 per cent in Germany, said that von der Leyen was not doing a good job. Only around 19 per cent of Germans surveyed gave her a positive rating.
The low ratings of her performance in her home country were largely due to comments from people who said they would vote for the far-right party ‘Alternative for Germany’, with more than half of them stating that she was doing a ‘very poor’ job.
In France, around 31 per cent view her performance negatively, whilst only 12 per cent view it positively. At the same time, more than 22 per cent of French people do not know who she is at all.
In Spain, around 30 per cent are dissatisfied with her performance, whilst the most common response is neutral or ‘don’t know’ (around 39 per cent).
The survey results were published just a few hours before von der Leyen is due to set out her vision for the bloc’s future in her annual State of the Union address.
“Von der Leyen is facing the same anti-political sentiment that has led to the ousting of incumbent politicians across the continent, and she will have to work hard to convince Europeans that any EU programme will take into account their widespread concerns about the cost of living,” said Seb Reid, head of public opinion polling at Public First.
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