Verhofstadt is the liberals’ choice

Olli Rehn, the European commissioner for economic and monetary affairs and the euro, has dropped his bid to become the candidate of the European Liberals for president of the European Commission. In a deal mediated by Mark Rutte, the Dutch prime minister, and Christian Lindner, the leader of the German FDP, Rehn agreed that Guy Verhofstadt should be the candidate of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats in Europe (ALDE).

The deal, struck on Monday (20 January), ends a quarrel that split the party ahead of the elections to the European Parliament in May. The deal should be endorsed by an electoral meeting of party members in Brussels on 1 February.

Rehn is to be a candidate for another senior post in the European Union to do with economic or foreign affairs, according to ALDE. He is thought ot be seeking the chairmanship of the Eurogroup of eurozone finance ministers.

Verhofstadt, a former Belgian prime minister, leads the group of ALDE MEPs. ALDE faces uncertainty in the May elections; its two biggest component parties, in the UK and Germany, are doing badly in the polls. The post of Commission president is likely to go to a member of one of the main parties – centre-right and centre-left – that have dominated the Parliament.

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