Overview of high-level office-holders

Prior to the Lisbon Treaty, the members of the European Council had no say in who held the presidency, as it was automatically the Head of State or Government of the Member State holding the rotating presidency who carried out this role. The changes introduced with Lisbon gave EU leaders the possibility to choose the person they believed to be most suitable.
When choosing the future President of the European Council, EU leaders take into account many factors, along with the candidates’ professional experience and performance. In addition to the personal qualities and previous functions of the candidate (e.g. all have so far been head of government before becoming European Council President), in recent institutional cycles, the election has been part of a package agreed between the EU leaders, one that also included the positions of President of the European Commission, High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, and President of the European Central Bank.
When choosing the candidates, attention may be paid to ensuring a certain balance among the individuals included in the package – a balance partially reflected and formalised in Declaration (No 6) on Article 15(5) and (6), Article 17(6) and (7) and Article 18 TEU. The latter states that ‘in choosing the persons called upon to hold the offices of President of the European Council, President of the Commission and High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, due account is to be taken of the need to respect the geographical and demographic diversity of the Union and its Member States’. During the nomination process for the EU’s new institutional leadership in 2019, Donald Tusk stressed that the nominations should reflect the EU’s demography and geographical balance, but also gender and political balances. While factors such as gender and geographical balance are taken into consideration, the allocation of high-level EU positions by the European Council has a strong political party dimension (see EPRS briefing on European political parties and the European Council).