European Parliament:
Following his appointment to the European Court of Auditors, Lefteris Christoforou (EPP, CY) left the European Parliament after having served in the 5th, 8th and 9th parliamentary terms. Cypriot publications report that on 2 November, Eleni Stavrou of the Democratic Rally party was declared as a new MEP in replacement of Christoforou. It is likely Stavrou will follow in her predecessor’s footsteps when it comes to European party affiliation and parliamentary focus.
Ad Hoc MEP Movements
- Ana Miranda (Greens/EFA, ES) replaced Margrette Auken (Greens/EFA, DK) as Vice-Chair of the Petitions Committee (PETI) on 25 October. Having served as Vice-Chair since 26 September 2019, Auken remains a member of the Petitions Committee. Miranda also joined the Western Sahara Intergroup.
- Margarita de la Pisa Carrión (ECR, ES) joined the Social Economy Intergroup.
- Lídia Pereira (EPP, PT) joined the Committee of inquiry to investigate the use of Pegasus and equivalent surveillance spyware (PEGA) as a substitute.
European Commission:
- Erik von Pistohlkors replaced Christian Danielsson in Directorate-General for Communication (DG-COMM) as Head of Representation to Sweden.
- Aleksandra Kordecka joined the Secretariat-General (DG-SG) as Head of Unit for Digital Transition, Industry and Single Market.
- Nicolas von Lingen joins the Secretariat-General (DG-SG) as Head of Unit for EEA, Switzerland, Andorra, Monaco and San Marino.
National Governments:
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen was forced to call an early election on 1 November following public outrage spurred by the government’s handling of a country-wide mink cull. The Moderates, led by Lars Løkke Rasmussen, made significant gains in the election, becoming the third-largest party in Denmark. Nonetheless it was Frederiksen’s centrist coalition that came out as victorious, securing 87 seats in mainland Denmark. Of the parties within the coalition, Frederiksen’s Social Democrats gained two seats and claimed 28 per cent of the vote, making them the largest party in the Folketing.