Marine Le Pen, the National Rally's candidate for France's 2027 presidential election, told supporters in her stronghold of Henin-Beaumont on Sunday, September 13, 2026, that she will formally launch her campaign in Orleans on October 25. She called the city a "symbol of victory over fatalism" and promised "a magnificent and exhilarating campaign," saying the election "will decide everything." Her speech closed with the Marseillaise, and she was joined on stage by party president Jordan Bardella and other National Rally officials. She is still awaiting a ruling from the Cour de Cassation, France's highest appeals court.
An Ipsos-BVA survey for Le Monde, the Cevipof, the Fondation Jean Jaures and the Institut Montaigne, which questioned more than 13,000 people, put Le Pen well ahead with 33% to 35% of voting intentions. Jean-Luc Melenchon of France Unbowed follows in four of six modeled scenarios, also reaching a runoff with 15.5% to 17%. Horizons candidate Edouard Philippe qualifies for the second round in only two scenarios, both requiring him to run without competition from Gabriel Attal on the centrist side.
Housing at the center of Le Pen's speech
Le Pen devoted her Henin-Beaumont address largely to housing, promising to make "hundreds of thousands" of vacant office buildings available for homes and to scrap rules tied to the DPE, the energy-performance rating that under current law will bar renting out homes graded F starting January 2028. She repeated her 2022 pledge of "priority for French people" in social housing and personal housing aid, promised a law against squatting, and renewed her call to cut VAT on energy, a move that runs against current EU law.
She said it was "moral and legal" for members of the "national community" to have more rights than others and vowed "no French person will lose any right, all will gain one." Standing for a fourth time as a presidential candidate, she said she swore to "give everything" and lead "the patriots of France" to victory, and dismissed her rivals, saying that after Macron, Edouard Philippe and Attal, "we're no longer doing an analysis, we're doing an autopsy."
Zemmour and Le Maire eye bids
Also on Sunday, Eric Zemmour delivered his own rentree speech in Le Port-Marly, in the Yvelines, at the close of his Reconquete party's summer university, laying groundwork for a possible run after winning 7.07% of the vote in 2022.
Former economy minister Bruno Le Maire, appearing on LCI, described himself as "a totally free man" following the publication of a manifesto of policy proposals for the country. He denied being in campaign mode but acknowledged weighing a bid, saying "of course I'm thinking about it." He proposed setting the retirement "pivot age" at 65, arguing this would make the pay-as-you-go pension system sustainable, and said the government must find 30 billion to 40 billion euros in savings, not 6 billion. He warned that without immediate action, "a new anger among the French is possible," a reference to the Gilets jaunes movement amid rising fuel prices, and said France's public accounts must be brought under control or risk having conditions "imposed on us by the European Central Bank."
Left divided ahead of a primary
Declared left-wing candidate Bernard Cazeneuve published a letter on X setting out policy ideas and calling for continued dialogue to build his platform. At the Fete de l'Humanite on Saturday, September 12, Melenchon opened his speech by honoring families of "300 journalists killed in Gaza and Lebanon" before denouncing far-right media. He blamed the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz for rising prices, saying refiners' margins had quadrupled and gas prices had risen 150% since Emmanuel Macron took office, and later demanded on X that the government freeze fuel prices before they exceed 3 euros a litre, pledging to do so if elected in 2027. He also repeated his proposal to cancel part of France's public debt, which fact-checkers have said is technically possible but faces political obstacles.
Fabien Roussel of the French Communist Party, speaking after Melenchon at the same festival, urged supporters to "make revolution now" against the cost of living and called for gatherings at roundabouts, as during the Gilets jaunes protests, plus rallies outside prefectures and ministries on September 15. Communist spokesperson Leon Deffontaines said the party would be more radical than Melenchon on economic issues, while LFI coordinator Manuel Bompard told AFP he sensed little enthusiasm this year around Roussel's candidacy compared with 2022.
Nathalie Arthaud of Lutte Ouvriere, also at the festival, proposed raising wages in line with real price rises and setting the minimum wage at 2,200 euros net. Socialist Party leader Olivier Faure said on BFMTV he would "censure" the 2027 budget if the government sticks to its current plans, proposed taxing large inheritances to raise 15 billion euros a year by 2040, and called Melenchon "a competitor" but not "an enemy." Former President Francois Hollande, at the Fete de la Rose in Frangy-en-Bresse, moved closer to his own bid, saying "that's why I am engaged again," and criticized Roussel's call for roundabout protests as not the role of politicians. Greens leader Marine Tondelier questioned the viability of the PS-Place Publique primary set for October, saying the left camp had not settled on a candidate.
Budget fight over pension contributions
Ahead of a 2027 budget due by the end of September, Economy Minister Roland Lescure told Le Parisien that "everyone will have to contribute" to a savings effort of around 30 billion euros, with retirees among those targeted, though he said pensions themselves would not be cut.
Labour Minister Jean-Pierre Farandou said on CNews, Europe 1 and Les Echos that "no pension will be reduced next year," describing any contribution as affecting how much pensions are revalued, and said a consultation with political parties would be launched without yet naming thresholds. He proposed negotiating pension revaluation annually, as with wages, while keeping the state ultimately responsible, and ruled out raising the minimum wage beyond its automatic inflation link, saying businesses could not absorb the cost. On fuel prices, he said the government would keep targeted aid for hard-hit businesses and drivers but could not extend general subsidies, saying "we don't have the money."
Faure countered that taxing retirees around a threshold of 2,000 euros was unfair, calling it "a form of indecency" and, on X, "a racket," and argued the real wealth threshold should be 4,000 euros. Economist Philippe Crevel told LCI that targeting all retirees without distinction would be "extremely unjust."
Renaissance MP Prisca Thevenot, close to Attal, told LCI she opposed additional taxes in the coming budget and favored adding a funded pension component, while saying she understood public anger over fuel prices and wages. Government spokesperson Maud Bregeon said on BFMTV the government would not freeze income tax brackets, proposing full indexation to inflation instead, since a freeze would automatically raise taxes for everyone. Francois Bayrou, on LCI, said "under the table, it's the state that pays" on pensions and that he disliked the idea of cutting them, warning France is an overindebted country that will have to face the consequences.
Rivalries on the right and centre
Attal launched an "Operation 1,000 Bistros," touring the country to meet voters, which Thevenot said reflects his style of engaging with the French "eye to eye."
Attal dismissed a right-centre coalition proposed by Philippe as "too narrow to win," telling a rentree gathering of the allied Democrates et Progressistes party that he was the only declared candidate defending a coalition "from the republican right to the left." Thevenot countered that a liaison committee including Renaissance, Horizons, MoDem, the UDI and the Radical Party had existed "for several months."
At the Terres de Jim farming festival on Friday, September 11, Philippe defended a right-centre alliance, saying that wherever the right and centre run together in French local elections "they win," and that the same applies nationally. He said he was not anxious about rivals including Attal and Republicans leader Bruno Retailleau, and separately denied social media claims, including from National Rally lawmakers, that he wants to delay taking office until September if elected president in order to "rest."
Retailleau delivered his own rentree speech on Saturday in Nogent-sur-Marne, in the Val-de-Marne, telling young people not to be "conformist" and blaming past political decisions, not "boomers," for the risk of "miserable pensions." He also attacked the National Rally as a "weathervane party" over Bardella's trip to London to meet Reform UK leader Nigel Farage, and blamed Macron's "at the same time" governing style for boosting political extremes.
Ukraine and protest calls
On X, Attal challenged Le Pen over whether she still wants to "cut off the tap to Ukraine," after a Russian drone struck a train at a station in western Ukraine just 2 kilometers from Poland, an EU member. Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said on France 2 and France Inter that authorities would "see how things evolve" regarding social media calls for demonstrations in the coming weeks, including one circulating for October 17, adding he would guarantee freedom of expression and assembly while remaining "vigilant."
Macron's approval at a record low
An Ipsos BVA-Cesi barometer published Saturday by La Tribune Dimanche, based on interviews conducted September 9-10, found President Emmanuel Macron's approval at its lowest since taking office, with 16% favorable opinions, down 5 points from July. His support also fell sharply among his own camp, dropping to 53%, down 19 points, among sympathizers of Renaissance, MoDem and Horizons.
