European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will defend her record in a debate Monday as she bids to land a second term after EU elections in June.

The former German defence minister, 65, has run the European Union's executive arm since 2019 and wants another five-year mandate.

On Monday, at 1700 GMT, she will participate in a debate with seven other candidates from across the political spectrum in the Dutch city of Maastricht.

"She will set out her vision for a strong Europe that protects our democracy, maintains our prosperity and improves the security of our common home," a campaign spokesperson told AFP ahead of the debate hosted by Politico and Studio Europa Maastricht.

Elections will be held June 6-9 across the 27-member bloc to choose the next European Parliament.

After the vote, top jobs including von der Leyen's will be decided taking into account which political groups in parliament score best in the election.

Von der Leyen is the candidate for the biggest political grouping, the conservative European People's Party. A website for her campaign appeared on Friday with the words, "Ursula 2024".

The politician -- who was born in Brussels and trained as a doctor -- describes herself as "a proud European, a mother of seven".

She will take part in another debate on May 23, this one hosted by the European Broadcasting Union.

Alberto Alemanno, a professor of EU law, pointed out that the EU polls do not directly elect the next commission president.

To secure the job, von der Leyen must win over national leaders who have the power to choose the commission president, even if the European Parliament must endorse that choice.

Alemanno wrote on X, the former Twitter, that Von der Leyen's recent campaigning around the election was "a PR stunt targeting 27 heads of state and government" who will decide the top jobs.

The other candidates in Monday's debate include current EU jobs commissioner Nicolas Schmit, a centre-left socialist, and Bas Eickhout, standing for the Greens grouping.