The Juncker Commission: A New Model of Presidentialism?

Drawing on original data collected as the Juncker administration approached the end of its term, this paper examines the Juncker Commission, what he intended by the ‘political Commission’, and how the concept came to be operationalised in practice. Its aim is to compare the twelfth Commission President with his predecessors in terms of the power of the office and how relations with other figures within the core executive were configured. The paper argues that, although other Commissions may have been ‘political’ and indeed presidential, the Juncker Commission represents a distinctive model that is qualitatively different from earlier administrations. Although it continues a trend towards centralisation initiated by José Manuel Barroso, the Juncker Presidency differs importantly in structure and operation even to those of his immediate predecessor, arguably the Commission President to which he is closest. Applying a core executive studies approach, the paper investigates how relations between key actors in the College and the administration have changed over time. It looks in particular at the latitude how different Commission Presidents have sought to mobilise the resources available to them both from the Treaty and other sources to organise their leadership of the Commission. As with prime ministers in a national setting, each Commission President attempts to a greater or lesser degree to recast key relationships between the office and other actors. As with PMs, the scope within which relations can be reconfigured is likely to vary over time.