The possible runners and riders to replace Bayroupublished at 16:29 British Summer Time
Hugh Schofield
Paris correspondent
If Bayrou falls, pressure will be strong on President Macron
to name a prime minister from the left. After all, the last two
nominees (Barnier and Bayrou) were from the right and centre, and a left
alliance came out numerically top in the 2024 election.
As head of the Socialist Party (PS), Olivier Faure
would be one possibility. The 57 year-old has a group of 66 deputies in the
National Assembly.
Half-Vietnamese by birth, he is a modest and moderate figure
who has spent his life in Socialist politics. His main handicap is the
party’s troubled relationship with the far-left firebrand Jean-Luc
Mélenchon.
That is why Macron might turn to a personality who
identifies broadly with the Socialists, but is not necessarily of their
ranks. Two such figures are the former prime minister Bernard
Cazeneuve, and the veteran ex-minister Pierre Moscovici,
currently head of the Cour des Comptes (the official accounting office).
Another intriguing possibility is the current finance
minister Eric Lombard, who although by trade a banker is known for his
social-liberal leanings.
If Macron decides to stick with the centre and right, his
first choice would probably be the defence minister Sebastien Lecornu.
The 39 year-old was in the running last December before the
nomination of François Bayrou. He is said to be close to President
Macron, who has given him the task of building up French military capabilities.
A political conservative, Lecornu was a member of the
Gaullist UMP party and its successor the Republicans (LR). He left to
join Macron’s party when the president was first elected in 2017.
Another conservative whose name has been mentioned is the
current minister of labour and health Catherine Vautrin.
Two other possibilities from inside government are Interior
Minister Bruno Retailleau, who now leads LR, and Justice Minister Gérald
Darmanin.
But with all eyes on the 2027 presidential election, would
these heavyweights want the electoral kiss-of-death which is to be Macron’s
next PM?