The unexpected return of far-right leader Marine Le Pen to the race for the 2027 French presidential elections is forcing one of her main rivals, Édouard Philippe, to adjust his attack strategy. After launching his campaign in May promising to convince voters with a “tremendously optimistic” conservative agenda, the former prime minister and his team are now attacking Le Pen by portraying her as a “fiscally irresponsible leftist.”
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“Marine Le Pen has a program that is largely left-wing,” said Nathalie Loiseau, an MEP campaigning for Philippe, in a Politico report.
The historic candidate of the former National Front, known for her anti-immigration views, conservative ideas regarding the country and LGBT communities, and accusations of antisemitic Nazism against the founder of the party, Jean-Marie Le Pen, would not be considered right-wing by Macronism: after years promoting the theory of two extreme demons (the National Rally on one side, and La France Insoumise on the other), the establishment has chosen to frame Le Pen as a left-wing force.
This is not a new criticism of Le Pen, whom some academics describe as a “right-wing populist.” For some time, critical sectors of the traditional right have accused her party, the National Rally, of economic inconsistency, and Philippe himself called them hypocrites during a recent rally in Paris.
However, now that Le Pen is the official candidate, and not Jordan Bardella, her 30-year-old protégé, who was considered more acceptable to conservative voters, Philippe and his team believe their attacks on the populist will have greater impact.
One of the most difficult strategies to understand, considering the widespread rejection this politician faces, is highlighting the differences between Philippe, who even promotes raising the retirement age again, and Le Pen, who talks about canceling the pension reform and lowering this age. Considering this “economically irresponsible,” Philippe bets on retaining traditional right-wing voters.
Philippe and his allies consider Le Pen a tougher rival to beat than Bardella, although they are confident in their ability to dismantle her political proposals. “Both Le Pen and Bardella had their strengths and weaknesses,” said parliamentarian Frédéric Valletoux, from Philippe’s party. “Le Pen has more experience and is probably a tougher adversary, but her program lacks sense in many aspects,” he added.
For months, Le Pen and Bardella have presented themselves as an inseparable tandem: she as the presidential candidate and he positioned to take the prime minister role. In the interview she gave on Tuesday, the 57-year-old politician described this alliance as a “winning formula”: a team ”solid, strengthened by their convictions and used to working together.”
Marine Le Pen’s first campaign event in western France, held on Wednesday, revealed a key clue about how the leader plans to win over voters who have long been skeptical of the far right: keeping Bardella, her charismatic protégé, inseparably by her side.
Le Pen’s strategy is based on the idea that Jordan Bardella’s youthful appeal, his communication skills and experience bridging with the business elite can help expand the reach of her party, the National Rally, and compensate for her own weaknesses. After unsuccessfully trying to reach the Élysée Palace three times, Le Pen has struggled to explain how her electoral program will differ this time, and how she will attract voters outside her usual base.
However, keeping Bardella so close can be seen both as a stroke of genius and a sign of desperation. The MEP has barely separated from Le Pen since the appeals court upheld her conviction for misappropriation of European Parliament funds and sentenced her to one year of house arrest, although removing the disqualification from elections.
On Wednesday, Le Pen and Bardella visited the town of La Flèche, where they shook hands, took selfies and answered questions about their joint campaign. Le Pen appeared very smiling and answered most questions, while Bardella, with a more serious expression, seemed to be adapting to his new role as right-hand man.
Despite having to wear an electronic ankle bracelet during the next 10 months of campaigning, Le Pen stated that there is no longer any scenario in which she will not run in the elections. She clearly leads the early polls, although analysts warn it is premature to rule out her opponents, and foresee greater competition from both the left and the right.
If the elections were held tomorrow, Le Pen would likely defeat her rivals with 36% of the vote in the first round, according to a recent IFOP poll for LCI and Le Figaro. Centrist Édouard Philippe would be around 19%, while leftist Jean-Luc Mélenchon would get 15%.
However, the elections to succeed Emmanuel Macron, who cannot run again after two consecutive terms, are not scheduled until April 18, 2027. If no candidate obtains a majority, a second round would be held on May 2.
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