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Von der Leyen won’t run for a third term. Or will she?

Politico EU Wednesday 17 June 2026, 04:05 UTC By Zoya Sheftalovich, Ian Wishart, Dionisios Sturis, Saga Ringmar 45 min read
Key Points

Listen on Spotify Apple Music Amazon Music Ursula von der Leyen is only a year and a half into her second term, but Brussels is already whispering about a third. Zoya Sheftalovich and Ian Wishart examine what is fueling the speculation — from her sweeping overhaul of the European Commission to concerns that more power is being concentrated at the top. Then, they explain why the U.S.-Iran peace deal has brought down oil and gas prices, but has not ended Europe’s energy worries.

Listen on

Ursula von der Leyen is only a year and a half into her second term, but Brussels is already whispering about a third. Zoya Sheftalovich and Ian Wishart examine what is fueling the speculation — from her sweeping overhaul of the European Commission to concerns that more power is being concentrated at the top.

Then, they explain why the U.S.-Iran peace deal has brought down oil and gas prices, but has not ended Europe’s energy worries.

And they take a first look at W, a new “made in Europe” social media platform hoping to challenge X with verified users, European data hosting and no bots.

Questions? Comments? Send us a voice note or message us on WhatsApp here or at +32 491 05 06 29.

Plus: On June 30th, we’re celebrating 100 episodes of the Brussels Playbook Podcast. Do you want to attend a live taping? Click here to register for a chance to apply! 

Von der (PERSON) Leyen (LOCATION) Spotify Apple Music (ORG) Brussels (LOCATION) Zoya Sheftalovich (PERSON) Ian Wishart (PERSON) the European Commission (ORG) Europe (LOCATION) European (ORG) the Brussels Playbook Podcast (ORG)
Originally published by Politico EU Read original →

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