European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen makes final bid for second term before vote

Ursula von der Leyen pledged to be a strong leader for Europe in a time of crisis and polarization as she made her final leadership pitch in a speech to lawmakers at the European Parliament ahead of a vote Thursday afternoon on whether to grant her a second five-year term as president of the European Union's executive commission.The secret ballot at the 720-seat parliament comes hot on the heels of strong gains by the far right in last month's election for the European Parliament. Voting gets un