With Bruno Retailleau, LR hopes to be reborn

Published on May 19, 2025 at 7:09 p.m.

Jean-Christophe Ploquin, editor-in-chief. Franck Ferville for La Croix

The election of Bruno Retailleau as president of the LR party on Sunday, May 18, has reignited competition on the right wing of the French political spectrum. The road ahead of the 2027 presidential election certainly seems very steep. But the party can hope to rebuild itself to contribute to future parliamentary majorities.

In recent months, the right has regained a position to influence the country's political life. The Republicans first returned to government, under the leadership of Michel Barnier and then François Bayrou. Since Sunday, they have also entered a period of stabilization. Bruno Retailleau's election as president was clear . And the tripling of the number of members ahead of the election shows a renewed interest among a section of public opinion in a right focused on sovereign issues, conservative on societal issues, and liberal on economics.

This awakening undoubtedly reflects the hope that a new political order is possible by the 2027 presidential election. The center will be orphaned by Emmanuel Macron, who will not be able to run again. The far right could be weakened by the likelihood of Marine Le Pen being sentenced to ineligibility on appeal . The stranglehold that has deprived Les Républicains of oxygen for eight years could therefore loosen. And give them the opportunity to reinvent themselves.

Other signs of recomposition are visible in this part of the chessboard, with the long-running campaign of Édouard Philippe . To appreciate them properly, we must undoubtedly escape the very French idea of bipolarization, shaped by the presidential election and the final duel that it imposes in the second round. This reality is counterbalanced by another major fact that has affected almost all European democracies: the fragmentation of the political offer and the disappearance of the dominant parties. Almost everywhere, government coalitions are the addition of minority formations. It is also this context that can give LR reasons for hope, at the price of a change in its deep culture.