Maroš Šefčovič

When digital single market Andrus Ansip stepped down from the European Commission to take up his seat in the European Parliament following the 2019 elections, the Commission's President Jean-Claude Juncker announced that Ansip's portfolio would be transferred to Šefčovič.

In September 2019 newly elected president of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen nominated Šefčovič as vice president for interinstitutional relations and foresight. Since 2021, he has been co-chairing and representing the European Union in the Partnership Council established by the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement.

On 18 January 2019, Šefčovič announced that he would stand as a candidate in the 2019 Slovak presidential race, with support of the Smer–SD party.

Šefčovič is married to Helena Šefčovičová, with whom he has 3 children: Helena, Martina, and Maroš. Šefčovič gave a TEDx talk at TEDxYouth@EEB3 in 2018.

Šefčovič's responsibilities included the administration of the Commission and management of some of the Commission's Internal Services; in particular consolidation of administrative reform, personnel and administration, European Schools and security. From 19 April 2014 to 25 May 2014, José Manuel Barroso was an Acting Commissioner in Šefčovič's stead while he was on electoral campaign leave for the 2014 elections to the European Parliament.

Šefčovič was appointed Vice-President of the European Commission for Energy Union in 2014. In July 2015, he brokered an agreement between fifteen countries from central, eastern and southeast Europe to speed up the building of gas links, improve security of supply, reduce their reliance on Russia and develop a fully integrated energy market.

He served as European Commissioner for Education, Training, Culture and Youth from 2009 to 2010 and Vice-President of the European Commission for Interinstitutional Relations and Administration from 2010 to 2014. He also served as European Commissioner for Energy from 2014 to 2019. In 2019, he was again nominated to become Vice President for Interinstitutional Relations and Foresight.

Šefčovič replaced Ján Figeľ as European Commissioner for Education, Training, Culture and Youth on 1 October 2009.

In 2000, he obtained a PhD in international law at Comenius University in Bratislava. The subject of his dissertation thesis was Sources of the EU law and respective legislative procedures.

Šefčovič is a former Slovak diplomat, who has served in Zimbabwe, Canada, and as Slovak ambassador to Israel (1999–2002). He was also Permanent Representative of the Slovak Republic to the European Union (2004–2009).

In June 1987, Šefčovič became a candidate for membership in the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia. After the two-year candidacy period during which he had to secure three approvals from other party members and which he embraced to "deepen his knowledge of Marxism–Leninism", he filed an application for party membership in May 1989. The party approved his application on 1 June 1989 and he became an official member.

Born in Bratislava, Šefčovič originally enrolled at the University of Economics in his hometown in 1984, but left the university after one year to pursue a degree in Russia at Moscow State Institute of International Relations, where he studied from 1985 to 1990.

Maroš Šefčovič (Slovak: [ˈmarɔʂ ˈʂeftʂɔʋitʂ] (listen); born 24 July 1966) is a Slovak diplomat and politician serving as Vice-President of the European Commission for Interinstitutional Relations since 2019, previously holding the office from 2010 to 2014. He has been member of the European Commission since 2009. Šefčovič also stood for office in the 2019 Slovak presidential election, which he lost against Zuzana Čaputová.