Klas Knot and Pablo Ernandez de Kos are the only candidates to succeed Kristin Lagarde as president of the European Central Bank (ECB), after the application deadline passed. Eurogroup President Kirijakos Pjerakakis published the list, and the Eurogroup will begin discussing the choice on 9 November 2026.
The candidates have differing monetary policy records. Knot is regarded as an advocate of tighter policy, while Ernandez de Kos supports a looser approach and gradual interest rate increases to contain inflation.
Knot, 59, was governor of the Dutch central bank from 2011 until last year and chaired the Financial Stability Board from 2021 until last year. During Marija Dragija’s ECB presidency, he publicly opposed eurozone interest rate cuts and the continuation of bond-buying, which aimed to counter low inflation. His record favours tighter policy.
Ernandez de Kos, 55, led Spain’s central bank from 2014 to 2024. He was an adviser to the ECB Executive Board in Frankfurt and headed the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision and the Technical Advisory Committee of the European Systemic Risk Board. Spain has never had an ECB president, while the Netherlands held the post under Vim Duisenberga from 1998 to 2003, a potential advantage for the Spanish candidate.
The Eurogroup is not expected to decide at its first discussion. Eurozone heads of state and government, including Slovenia, will have the final say, but the appointment procedure has not yet been set. Leaders could seek a political agreement at a summit on 26 and 27 November 2026; that would allow the European Parliament and the ECB to give their views on the future president.
Leaders are due to revisit the matter at a summit on 17 and 18 December 2026 and confirm the selected candidate. The successful candidate will take office on 7 February, when Lagarde is due to leave the ECB presidency. She announced in late October that she would end her term early, saying she could not remain neutral as the role requires and wanted more freedom to speak publicly on issues outside monetary policy. The appointment process remains unsettled.
