Presidential election 2027: Gabriel Attal on the verge of taking the plunge, pressured by his party and five hundred elected officials

Former Prime Minister Gabriel Attal announced at a press conference on Tuesday that he would speak "in the coming days" about a possible candidacy in the 2027 presidential election, just days after 500 local elected officials publicly called on him to run for the Élysée Palace. This imminent announcement is expected to precede a long-planned rally in Paris on May 30, which is now taking on the appearance of a launchpad.

The pressure mounted on two fronts simultaneously. In an opinion piece published last weekend by La Tribune Dimanche, elected officials, including Renaud Muselier, president of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, and Thomas Cazenave, mayor of Bordeaux, argued that the 2027 election would be a "turning point" and that Gabriel Attal was "the person our country needs." Internally, the Renaissance party's national council had, for its part, adopted a motion on May 12th calling on "the party's secretary general to be a candidate," by an overwhelming majority of 91%.

A set timetable, but a still conditional candidacy

Attal has been making numerous trips since the release of his book at the end of April, giving his tour the air of a full-fledged pre-campaign. Formally, he has until October 1st to declare his candidacy, which "will only become effective after a vote by members organized in the coming weeks," according to the rules set by Renaissance.

In a presidential landscape particularly crowded on the right and center, with declared or pending candidacies from Édouard Philippe, Bernard Cazeneuve, Raphaël Glucksmann, and François Hollande, the 36-year-old former Prime Minister is banking on his youth and enduring popularity to occupy a central position. His official entry into the race, expected before the end of the month, should reshuffle the balance within a Macronist camp still searching for its natural successor.