(Bloomberg) -- Giorgia Meloni’s lawmakers in Brussels voted against the reappointment of Ursula von der Leyen as the president of the European Commission, highlighting tensions between the Italian prime minister and European Union institutions.
All 24 Brothers of Italy MEPs opposed her reappointment in a secret ballot in Strasbourg, according to people familiar with their decision, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
Delegation head Carlo Fidanza told Ansa that “the choices made these days, the political platform, and the support from the left has made impossible our support to confirm President von der Leyen.”
The European Parliament voted Thursday in a secret ballot to approve her renomination as head of the EU’s executive with 401 in favor, clearing the threshold of 360 that she needed.
The Brothers of Italy’s opposition follows Meloni decrying what she described as interference and a lack of respect for Italians who made her party the country’s the most popular in last month’s European Parliament election.
However, the protest vote may be primarily symbolic, according to people familiar with her thinking.
Meloni didn’t have many alternatives, one of the people said, as voting for von der Leyen’s reappointment would have meant aligning with the Greens. Italy is still likely to get a top job in the next commission, the person said, noting that Meloni’s MEPs wouldn’t have been enough to hijack von der Leyen’s reappointment.
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