Introduction: The Politicisation of the European Commission’s Presidency

The chapter situates the contribution of the book in the wider context, highlighting the crucial role played by the European Commission and its President within the political system of the European Union, and emphasising the value of the systematic assessment of the evolution and implications of executive leadership appointment. The introduction motivates the interest in a comprehensive assessment of the impact of the post-Lisbon changes and chiefly the introduction of the Spitzenkandidaten process from the early stages of nominee selection, through the campaign, election, and post-appointment phases. This chapter considers the evolution of leadership selection in the EU and the extant literature on the Spitzenkandidaten process situating the insights of the 12 substantive contributions addressing the politicisation of the Commission presidency through multiple disciplinary lenses. In doing so, the chapter sets out how the book takes stock 10 years after the introduction of the Spitzenkandidaten process, providing a multifaceted assessment of the complex changes in selection of the EU’s executive leadership, going beyond overly simplistic dichotomies such as success and failure.