France’s far-right National Rally is betting that its young, charismatic party leader will be a major asset as it sniffs out massive gains in the upcoming European elections.
Jordan Bardella, 28, took over in 2021 as leader of the party of Marina LePen who has been trying to rid the party of the racist and anti-Semitic mark left by his father and party founder, Jean-Marie Le Pen.
She is still widely expected to be the party’s candidate in the 2027 presidential election, her fourth bid for the Élysée, which is widely seen as her best chance to become head of state.
But since assuming leadership of the National Rally (RN) party, Bardella has become an increasingly visible presence in French politics and has formed an effective tandem with Le Pen, who leads her deputies in parliament.
A recent election rally in the southwestern coastal town of Royan highlighted the appeal of Bardella, a prominent presence on the TikTok platform, with adoring fans lining up to take selfies.
“I get it, I get it,” shouted a happy young voter, holding his smartphone, after getting his idol to pose with him for a photo.
– ‘Not Le Pen’ –
Bardella did not revolutionize the party’s belief system, experts point out.
It continues to oppose what it considers to be unacceptable mass immigration, a supposed decline of civilization in France and a “punitive ecology” that harms farmers.
But when presenting the party’s program for the EU parliamentary vote in June, his audience in Royan seemed grateful for the freshness he brings.
“He represents youth,” said Agnes, 60, omitting her last name. “I never voted for Le Pen. But there has been a renewal and that is a very good thing,” she said.
“One advantage that Jordan Bardella has over Marine Le Pen is that her name is not Le Pen,” agreed Mathieu Gallard, political scientist at the consulting and market research firm Ipsos.
Le Pen laid many of the foundations for Bardella’s success. She was runner-up in two presidential elections, losing to Emmanuel Macron on both occasions, and won the most seats ever for her party in the 2022 parliamentary elections.
Opinion polls ahead of the June 9 European elections – seen in France as a key test for the government – pointed to a heavy defeat for Macron.
An Ifop-Fiducial poll this week revealed that 32.5% of voters intend to vote for the National Rally list led by Bardella, and just 18% for Macron’s allies.
– ‘Our Savior’ –
Bardella is part of an increasingly younger dynamic in French politics that includes President Emmanuel Macron himself, 46, and his Prime Minister Gabriel Attal, 35, appointed earlier this year.
“He’s young, ambitious, approachable,” said Louis Vergnaud, 23, dressed in a white Bardella Ralph Lauren shirt.
“For young people, he represents the future of France. Our savior,” he told AFP.
Bardella’s carefully communicated life story – his family immigrated from Italy and he was raised by his mother in a poor suburb of Paris – heightens the contrast with the former National Front (FN) party led by Jean-Marie Le Pen. of an imposing castle in a wealthy town west of the capital.
His rise has not been entirely without controversy with a French television report claiming earlier this year that he used an anonymous Twitter account to share racist messages when he was a local elected official.
Bardella vehemently denied the report, broadcast on France 2, and RN stated that it would take legal action.
Bardella, considered a social conservative but more liberal on economic issues than Le Pen, found many subtle ways to renew the party’s image.
In an apparent show of new openness, international songs were mixed with French hits before the start of his rally in Royan.
The 1,300 people in attendance that day seemed like a cross-section of Bardella’s diverse voter base: fashionable young people mixing with middle-aged and older voters, often dressed in shirts or suits.
The National Rally is now “clearly perceived as being the main opposition party to Emmanuel Macron and his government”, said political scientist Gallard.
It has also become better at responding to voters’ daily concerns, such as declining household purchasing power. “Just like a normal opposition party,” he said.
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