The 27 members of the European Union are set to ratify the Lisbon treaty by next year, creating, among other things, the new office of president of the European Council.

Currently the EU's leadership is rotated between the member countries every six months, while the new president will hold office for two and half years.

Who will be selected for this new job? That seems even harder to predict than who will be the next U.S. president.

German magazine Der Spiegel Online reported, "Tony Blair is one prominent name that has been bandied about recently. The former British prime minister is said to have a good shot, and he has powerful friends. French President Nicolas Sarkozy has thrown his support behind Blair for reasons of both personality and politics"; (Jan. 28, 2008).

But the magazine noted that many others in Europe, including German Chancellor Angela Merkel, aren't as impressed.

One thing is for sure. Americans will likely miss the behind the scenes and even open jockeying for this powerful new position while caught up in their own presidential election.