Brussels (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is facing a no-confidence vote due to the “Pfizergate” scandal and other allegations, as far-right MEPs are pushing for a vote that could block her second term, Financial Times reported.
Right-wing lawmakers in the European Parliament say they’ve gathered enough support for their plan to remove the European Commission following the EU court’s decision on how it handled personal messages with the pharmaceutical company’s CEO.
According to the Financial Times, Romanian far-right MEP Gheorghe Pîrperă stated that he plans to submit the proposal on Thursday, having collected over the required 72 signatures.
“The initiative is essentially about supporting transparency and ensuring a fair and genuine democratic process,”
He said.
On the other hand, although the threshold for launching a vote of no confidence is relatively low, it would require more than two-thirds of the European Parliament members to remove von der Leyen and her European Commission. The Assembly has 720 members, and 401 voted for her as President a year ago.
What is the Pfizergate scandal, and why does it matter?
Pîrperă’s submission is based on the so-called Pfizergate court case against von der Leyen. The Pfizergate case against Ursula von der Leyen centers on the EU Commission’s refusal to disclose text messages exchanged between von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, and Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla during COVID-19 vaccine procurement negotiations.
The New York Times journalist Matina Stevis-Gridneff requested access to these messages, which the Commission denied, claiming it did not possess them.
However, on May 14, 2025, the EU General Court ruled that the EU Commission acted unlawfully by rejecting the request without providing credible explanations for the alleged non-possession of the documents.
The court found evidence suggesting the existence of these messages and criticised the Commission for failing to detail the searches conducted to locate them. This ruling annulled the Commission’s refusal and was seen as a significant blow to von der Leyen’s presidency and the Commission’s commitment to transparency.
