Just over a year ago, French President Emmanuel Macron decided to dissolve the National Assembly, plunging France into political chaos. No further dissolution was possible, as the French Constitution prohibits a dissolution of parliament within a year of the last one. The past year has reopened the field of possibilities. Jordan Bardella, president of the Rassemblement National (RN), was interviewed on CNews about new political prospects emerging between now and the next presidential elections in 2027.
Bardella appeared on the conservative channel in his dual role as
president of France’s leading party, the RN, and as a potential
candidate for his camp if the appeal
lodged by Marine Le Pen in the European parliamentary assistants’ case
fails, preventing her from standing in the 2027 presidential election.
The RN president painted a bleak picture of France in 2025 under
Macron’s presidency: “If we don’t save our country in 2027, France could
disappear,” he explained gravely, viewing the rescue of the country as a
“civilisational challenge.” He denounced the deadlock in which the
president had locked the French people: “The country is not moving
forward, France continues to decline.” None of the major issues of
concern to the French people are currently being addressed: immigration,
security, purchasing power, or the energy crisis. The deadlock is also
political: nothing can emerge at present due to the institutional
gridlock created by the 2024 dissolution, which has resulted in a
National Assembly without a majority and a government that is therefore
without legitimacy.
If, according to Bardella’s analysis, “the central bloc has nothing
left to say,” this means that new political avenues may open up.
Bardella is calling for a new dissolution of the National Assembly,
which alone could enable the country to break the current deadlock, even
before the next presidential election: as things stand, nothing
“healthy” can emerge. But for now, this is out of the question, if Macron’s statements on the subject are to be believed.
For the first time, Bardella has outlined his prediction for the 2027
election—without, however, saying who will represent the national Right
in the race, he or Marine Le Pen. According to him, it is entirely
possible that the second round of the election will be a head-to-head
between the RN and a left-wing candidate from La France Insoumise (LFI),
as he believes that the centre and its satellites are now completely
discredited. Such a confrontation would, of course, be to the advantage
of the RN, as Jean-Luc Mélenchon’s party is now a powerful repellent for
a large number of voters. Bardella lambasted the Left’s pervasive
“communitarianism” as being always ready to fan the flames of separatism
and defend foreign interests in the service of the dangerous cause of
Islamism.
During the interview, Bardella refused to bet on the victory of any
union of the Rights, despite having given assurances to this effect
during his recent participation in the Summit of Liberties (Sommet des Libertés),
which brought together the various families of the Right. His discourse
is intended to be broader, addressing all “lovers of France.” Without
saying so, Bardella is probably also counting on a split in the centre
and centre-right vote between several candidates who are unable to
agree—Retailleau, Wauquiez, Philippe, Attal—which would mathematically
benefit the RN-LFI duel.
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