­Who aced (and flunked) the commissioner hearings? Here’s what our insiders have to say.

It’s showtime, baby!
Over the next week, the EU’s 26 wannabe commissioners will each face a three-hour grilling from the European Parliament’s specialist committees that will probe (in theory, at least) their credentials for overseeing EU policymaking.
While their success will partly be determined by political machinations beyond their control, the Parliament will also be poised to reject anyone who delivers a poor performance — and Brussels policy wonks will be watching closely for any hints of what the next five years have in store.
In one sense, the recipe for success is simple: Show off your language skills, be respectful to the Parliament, and above all don’t make any spending promises.
But it’s also a trial by fire for the commissioners-in-waiting, who’ve had seven weeks to beef up their understandings of the portfolios bestowed on them by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
Will they be able to talk eloquently about the nitty-gritty of the issues on their patch, or will the Parliament’s lawmakers — many of whom have spent years deep in Europe’s policy weeds — expose major gaps in the candidates’ knowledge?
Here’s POLITICO’s snap insider take on how well each commissioner hopeful fared, which will be updated after each hearing.
In his parting words to MEPs, Brunner said that he had been warned against the portfolio of migration and internal affairs as a “mission impossible” that is, at once, “politically, highly charged.” Clearly he took those warnings to heart, delivering a cautious and at times dull performance, revealing little to the assembled MEPs.
MEPs saw a commissioner-hopeful who knew what not to say — he didn’t slam Meloni’s plan to detain asylum seekers in Albania — but he didn’t give lawmakers much to get excited about, even when pressed. His safe performance served him well, as enough political groups’ whips waved through his appointment.
Brunner did commit to a new deportations directive, but told lawmakers they should not expect a proposal before June 2025 after broad consultations with stakeholders. He also pledged that, as a guardian of the treaty, he’d trigger “necessary proceedings” if countries don’t implement the asylum and migration pact. And he repeatedly said he’d insist on an approach that’s “fair and firm” (without ever explaining how.)
Faced by several questions on whether he would support EU cash to finance physical barriers in the bloc’s external borders, Brunner said that “physical infrastructure such as fences and walls could be financed by European funding, in terms of legality. But we do not have funds in place for now.” However, he vowed to have funding for border management “reflected” in the next EU budget.
He paid homage to the importance of boosting the EU’s internal security but, despite frequent prodding by lawmakers, he wouldn’t take a strong stance against EU countries that have reinstated checks on borders in the free-travel zone — that list includes his own country, Austria.
He also dodged questions on search-and-rescue operations, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Hamas and anti-Christian hatred.
Brunner did commit to launch a new strategy for internal security, an action plan against drug trafficking and a port strategy, and enhancing Europol capacities.
— Hanne Cokelaere and Max Griera
EP committee verdict: Yes
Sweden’s Jessika Roswall doesn’t have the longest track record in environmental policymaking – and that showed during the hearing.
The Commissioner-designate for the environment, water and the circular economy faced tough questions on virtually every single topic relevant to her extensive portfolio: From encouraging farmers to decarbonise their business and protect biodiversity, to harmonizing EU countries’s management of waste to create a single market for secondary materials. In light of the disastrous floods that hit Valencia, Spain last week, the Commissioner-designate was grilled on her plans to make sure the EU would be better prepared for increasingly frequent climate events in the future, flood risk, and water scarcity.
Just as she had done in her written answers to MEP questions, Roswall tried to thread the needle between lawmakers asking for an unwavering defender of the EU’s green agenda, and those who want her to protect European businesses at all cost. “A competitive economy and a clean transition goes hand in hand,” Roswall said.
But overall, the 51-year old lawyer-by-trade gave a disappointing performance. Appearing less and less confident as the hearings went on, Roswall was repeatedly dodging specific questions from MEPs on whether she would back the creation of a new biodiversity funds, which product groups would be covered by the Ecodesign regulation, or when MEPs could expect a timeframe for her proposed ban on PFAS in consumer products.
MEPs were not impressed.
After closed door talks, MEP group coordinators decided to postpone a decision until 2:30pm Wednesday, according to four parliamentary officials and MEPs granted anonymity to discuss the private discussions. One option, according to two officials, is to ask Roswall for written responses to additional questions before making a decision on her confirmation. She’d have 24 hours to respond.
— Marianne Gros
No stranger to the European Parliament after serving as an MEP for almost a decade, Dan Jørgensen clearly knew how to please the crowd. The Danish commissioner-designate cleanly navigated difficult questions on affordable housing, energy costs and renewables during his hearing — while getting a healthy dose of laughs from MEPs.
Jørgensen faces a mammoth task: bringing down the European Union’s energy prices, a core plank of the bloc’s plans to remain competitive vis-à-vis the United States and China. To do that, he said he’d focus on more renewables and energy efficiency, better grid infrastructure, increased digitalization, faster permitting and homing in on new technologies like carbon capture and green hydrogen.
Still, there was one area where the former Danish climate minister struggled to please everyone: nuclear power. While remaining calm and charismatic, Jørgensen repeatedly refused to throw his support behind atomic energy in a move that did not please pro-nuclear lawmakers. He repeatedly poured cold water over the idea of pumping EU cash into new nuclear projects and cast doubt over the imminent rollout of advanced small-scale reactors, called SMRs.
He also remained wishy-washy at times, refusing to give details or timelines on overhauling EU state aid rules, phasing out Russian energy and where exactly he will find the much-needed euros to enact his ambitious agenda.
But hey, at least he brought entertainment. Facing pressure from French MEP Christophe Grudler for not being pro-nuclear enough and German MEP Jutta Paulus for being too favorable to nuclear, he asked Paulus: “May I suggest you go into a room with Mr. Grudler and sort this out?”
— Victor Jack
EP committee verdict: Yes
The 67-year-old Croatian center-right politician was clearly pursuing a no-risk strategy as she aimed to do just enough to get lawmakers’ approval for a second term in the European Commission.
Questions about Israel’s war in Gaza and migration dominated proceedings, with Šuica repeatedly asked to condemn Israel’s actions or take action by suspending an European Union-Israel trade agreement.
But Šuica stuck to the narrow tram tracks set out in the instructions she received from Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, and toughed out the entire three-hour hearing without wavering from her center-right European People’s Party’s typical stance on the Middle East conflict: Namely, calling for a two-state solution, describing the Oct. 7 attacks as “unjustifiable,” and deploring the humanitarian situation in Gaza while refraining from laying blame at Israel’s door.
She promised to keep funding the United Nations Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA and the Palestinian Authority.
Her new Mediterranean portfolio appears to be full of old intractable problems, not just on the Middle East but also on migration, something the EU is taking a tougher line on.
Here, she sketched out a desire to strike new “comprehensive partnerships” with Jordan, Morocco and other countries in the image of deals struck with Tunisia and Egypt. MEPs appeared to win some concessions from her to scrutinize the often lackluster human rights dimensions of these deals.
She also told MEPs how she intends to work with the EU’s likely next foreign affairs chief Kaja Kallas. “Her role will be more on [a] diplomatic track and my role will be more on the economic track,” Šuica said.
— Eddy WaxEP committee verdict: Yes
This was a solid performance before European lawmakers with no slip-ups or signs of misunderstanding.
It delivered exactly what you’d expect from an aspiring democracy chief: numerous mentions of EU treaties and fundamental rights; a firm “political will” to challenge member states weakening rule of law; a promise to avoid “double standards”; and a clear commitment to uphold the primacy of EU law.
McGrath’s priorities included enforcing the bloc’s new media freedom rulebook and the upcoming Digital Fairness Act to tackle social media’s addictive “business models” that can harm children online. And he pushed back on the idea that the General Data Protection Regulation harms innovation, saying that the EU can enjoy high standards and benefit from new tech.
While he didn’t go overboard on details around the new job, he did dodge loaded questions from far-right lawmakers, triggering rounds of applause from the other groups. And the seasoned politician very much played to his audience, citing his career as a parliamentarian and regularly praising and promoting the role of the European Parliament. A smart move.
— By Mathieu Pollet and Sam Clark
EP committee verdict: Yes
Zaharieva’s strategy to survive her hearing was clear: Pick a couple of priorities that would resonate well with lawmakers and double down on them. 
Within the first hour, Zaharieva managed to clearly convey two of her main talking points: to simplify and cut red tape in Horizon Europe, the EU’s main research funding program, and to push EU countries to finally reach their target of spending 3 percent of GDP on research and innovation. 
It made for a strong first 60 minutes. Lawmakers have long called for both of these things, so Zaharieva was telling them all they wanted to hear. The only dissent was Left lawmaker Per Clausen, who pressed Zaharieva on EU research funding for Israel — but she managed to avoid controversy. 
After that, it fell a bit flat. 
Zaharieva kept repeating the same lines, on simplification in particular, without ever really going into detail. But lawmakers also seemed to run out of steam, refraining from pushing her to give more details. Once she was called out for dodging a question. Some major policy files promised by Ursula von der Leyen and falling under Zaharieva’s remit, such as a strategy to boost the life science industry’s competitiveness, were largely omitted from the discussions.
“I don’t know what else to add,” Zaharieva said at one point, unintentionally summing up the hearing’s final hour. 
— By Pieter Haeck
EP committee verdict: Yes
Greek politician Apostolos Tzitzikostas maneuvered his commissioner hearing like a seasoned veteran, deftly reminding the transport chair of his speaking time, addressing potential conflicts of interest head on and even navigating multiple interruptions from protesting MEPs.
The 56-year-old economist appeared well informed, with eloquent responses and occasional quips, though his answers largely lacked detail — even after multiple questions probed him for specifics.
The crisis surrounding the automotive sector took up a large chunk of the session, but automakers hoping to find an ally to reverse legislation mandating 100 percent zero-emission vehicles by 2035 left disappointed. Carmakers have had plenty of notice, he said, and the legislation creates certainty for the sector. The European People’s Party, however, received its desired commitment on an exception to the law for e-fuels.
TRAN Committee Chair Eliza Vozemberg, a fellow Greek, presided over the hearings, showing just how much control the Southern European country will have over the transport portfolio — and the potential conflicts of interest. On two separate occasions, lawmakers disrupted the proceedings to protest Tzitzikostas’ nomination.
The 2023 train crash in Greece that left 57 people dead loomed over the proceedings, but Tzitzikostas didn’t shy away from the controversy, instead preemptively bringing it up during his opening remarks. But his repeated insistence that safety will be his number one concern did little to quell questions of how he would handle a potential infringement case over the rail tragedy.
Luxembourg’s Christophe Hansen had a truly impressive hearing, at various moments brain-wrinklingly interesting, gut-wrenchingly funny, and heart-breakingly sad. The 42-year-old won a half dozen rounds of applause during the session as he deftly addressed tricky policy problems and personalities. 
After a polarizing year for EU agriculture, the MEP could’ve fallen foul of several issues. The Socialists were grumpy that their Spitzenkandidat, Nicolas Schmit, hadn’t got Luxembourg’s nomination. He chose to ignore the Patriots and ESN folk in his pre-hearing lobbying. And as its rapporteur in ENVI, he’s tied to the increasingly controversial (now-delayed) deforestation law. 
But it all went swimmingly. Hansen stuck to the center on most issues, promising fair pricing for farmers, environmental mirror clauses on agrifood imports, and generational renewal in farming. He veered conservative on some issues, refusing to legislate on Europeans’ meat consumption, downplaying the scale of livestock emissions, and criticizing the idea of an agri-emissions trading system, or ETS. 
He leaned progressive on others, defending his deforestation law, hinting that farmers’ fears over Ukraine’s accession were overblown, and even coming out in favor of the EU-Mercosur free trade deal (a near-taboo in agrifood circles).