French Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin has officially endorsed former Prime Minister Édouard Philippe for the 2027 presidential election, backing the mayor of Le Havre over rival Gabriel Attal.
In an interview published on Monday, August 17, in the regional newspaper La Voix du Nord, Darmanin declared that he had decided not to stand in the presidential election himself. He said that serving the general interest meant avoiding added division within the governing coalition, and he urged other figures in the majority to rally behind Philippe as well.
The announcement gives Philippe, who served as Prime Minister under President Emmanuel Macron from 2017 to 2020, a significant boost at the start of the political season. The decision places the Justice Minister behind the president of the centre-right Horizons party rather than Gabriel Attal, who leads the centrist Renaissance party and the Ensemble pour la République parliamentary group in the National Assembly.
Agreement between macronist rivals
Philippe and Attal are locked in a high-stakes contest to emerge as the sole candidate representing the macronist bloc in 2027. Both politicians have agreed that one of them will step aside early next year in favor of whichever contender holds the stronger position in opinion polls.
Philippe, who has served as mayor of Le Havre in Normandy since stepping down as Prime Minister, declared his presidential candidacy in 2024. He currently maintains a clear lead over Attal in voter preference surveys.
A poll released on August 7 by the institute Cluster 17 asked French voters whom they wished to see win the 2027 presidential election. Marine Le Pen of the far-right National Rally led the survey at 22 percent, followed by left-wing leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon at 16 percent. Philippe placed third with 11 percent of support, while Attal ranked ninth with 3 percent, tied with former Socialist President François Hollande.
Polling gap and summer strategies
The Cluster 17 survey also tracked overall popularity ratings for political figures. Philippe ranked fifth among all French politicians with 26 percent positive opinions, up two points from July. Attal placed 17th with 21 percent positive opinions, down one point from the previous month.
However, a separate Elabe poll published in late July for the financial newspaper Les Échos showed a tighter race, with both Attal and Philippe tied at 30 percent popularity. That survey placed both men behind far-right figures Marine Le Pen at 34 percent and Jordan Bardella at 36 percent.
Attal, who succeeded Philippe at Matignon as Prime Minister before taking leadership of the ruling party's deputies, spent the summer making frequent media appearances in an effort to close the gap. He unveiled key elements of his political platform in the Journal du Dimanche, a weekly publication owned by the Bolloré group, attempting to position himself further to the right.
The move generated widespread criticism across the political spectrum and failed to deliver high-profile endorsements. In contrast, Philippe spent most of the summer away from the spotlight, with his only major public contribution being an opinion column on the Spanish North African enclave of Ceuta.
Growing cabinet support for Philippe
Despite his low profile over the summer, Philippe has consolidated support among key cabinet ministers. Prior to Darmanin's announcement, the mayor of Le Havre secured endorsements from government spokesperson Maud Bregeon and Minister for Ecological Transition Mathieu Lefèvre, both of whom are close allies of the Justice Minister.
Further cabinet backing could follow soon. Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu, a close personal friend of Darmanin, is expected to consider endorsing Philippe in the coming weeks as cabinet members line up behind a single candidate.
Philippe faces a broader challenge in uniting reformist voters across the political centre. François Bayrou, the president of the centrist MoDem party, recently called for a wide primary election involving all reformist democrats. Bayrou proposed potential candidates including former EU Commissioner Thierry Breton and former Prime Ministers Jean Castex and Bernard Cazeneuve, while notably omitting both Philippe and Attal from his list.
Upcoming campaign schedule
Philippe, who held a major political rally in Paris in early July, is preparing to resume active campaigning. He will travel to the French overseas Indian Ocean territories of Mayotte and La Réunion from August 21 to 25.
Following his overseas trip, Philippe will address the annual back-to-school gathering of Medef, France's major business federation. On August 29, he is scheduled to debate former President François Hollande at a summer conference organized by the Laboratoire de la République, a think tank founded by former Education Minister Jean-Michel Blanquer. Both the Medef speech and the debate will be broadcast live on news channel LCI.
Philippe will conclude his August schedule on Sunday, August 30, with a major speech at Darmanin's annual political gathering in the northern city of Tourcoing, where he is expected to deliver a lengthier and stronger campaign address alongside his newly declared supporter.
