Greens choose Bové and Keller to head campaign

German MEP Keller gets the most votes.

Voters in the European Green party’s open primary have elected French MEP José Bové and German MEP Ska Keller as their dual nominees for European Commission president. The primary vote, which was open to anyone and was conducted online, closed yesterday (28 January).

Out of a total of 22,676 votes cast, Keller received the most, with 11,791. She was closely followed by Bové with 11,726. German MEP Rebecca Harms, the Green group leader, received 8,170 votes. Italian MEP Monica Frassoni received 5,851 votes.

The Green party has chosen to nominate two people because that has been its tradition for selecting group leaders. Officially the party is not fielding a ‘candidate’ for Commission president, but rather two people to lead its campaign, given that there is little chance the Greens will attract the most votes in the election.

“Should the opportunity arise that we are in a position to nominate a candidate for the European Commission presidency then we will choose one of the two,” said Johannes Hillje, the Greens campaign manager. He said the Greens will participate in the presidential debates, and that Bové and Keller will split the debates between them.

The surprisingly high result for the largely unknown Keller has created an awkward situation for the Greens regarding Harms, who is still the leader of the group of Green MEPs. Speaking at a press conference yesterday, Bové said that Harms should still be put at the top of the party list for the German Greens. When Keller was asked if she agreed with this, she said no.

She said that she is contesting the top spot on the list, and that this will be decided at the German Greens congress on 8 February.

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