Can Frans Timmermans be best succeeded by a woman?
‘Who will succeed Frans Timmermans in Brussels?’ is the title of the article in Dutch financial newspaper Financieele Dagblad (FD). Various candidates have been reviewed and all are contenders. But a female candidate may still have an advantage, believes Luuk van Middelaar, Professor of Foundations and Practice of the European Union and its Institutions.
His view seems to go against the demand made by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. ‘Whereas until now she wanted one male and one female candidate from each Member State for reasons of gender balance, this is no longer necessary.’ Writes the FD.
Nevertheless, Van Middelaar believes that a woman may have an advantage: ‘The gender factor doesn’t come into play now, but it will again in the next Commission. If you send a woman now, and she stays, you’re more likely to have a heavier portfolio at the next Commission. In this way, you can cash in on this later.’
Would you like to know more about the candidates the FD discusses? Click here to read the article (in Dutch).
Photo by Guillaume Perigois via Unsplash.