This is one of the most anticipated returns of this end of August. Gérald Darmanin brings together his supporters, this Sunday, in his stronghold of Tourcoing (North). The Minister of the Interior is holding his first major political comeback on the theme of the working classes, which he considers neglected by the parties. The gathering is highly anticipated, and not just for the planned “sausages-fries-beers”. Because the person concerned, frustrated at not having been appointed to Matignon, launched the succession battle to Emmanuel Macron with a bang. If he no longer hides his ambitions for the 2027 presidential election, is Nicolas Sarkozy’s former protege already campaigning? 20 minutes conducted the investigation and is trying to find the clues.
He can’t stop talking about it
We do not know if Gérald Darmanin thinks about it while shaving, but the presidential election seems to take a good place in his mind. Because the first cop in France never stops talking about the supreme deadline, not scheduled for four years, during his interviews. In mid-August, he already evokes this electoral horizon in the Figaro : “What interests me is no longer to look at what happened in 2017 and 2022. What worries me now is what will happen in 2027”, he says, before d put it back on, this Thursday, In The voice of the North. “The fact is that in five years a victory for Madame Le Pen is quite likely. Faced with this, we will need a candidate, ”he assures, without going so far as to confide that he is obviously the best placed.
“He is gradually laying down milestones to give himself the best chance of a future candidacy. This is reminiscent of companies such as that of Nicolas Sarkozy, who from 2004 made his specific voice heard, ”recalls Olivier Rouquan, associate researcher at Cersa (Center for Studies and Research in Administrative and Political Sciences).
He criticizes his camp…
Like a certain Emmanuel Macron in his time, who from time to time stung François Hollande and his friends in the socialist government, Gérald Darmanin seems to be freeing himself, step by step, from the macronist software. “I was rather in the minority for the moment on the importance of the social question but I hope that the popular compass that I propose will one day be fully heard by the majority”, he swings in the face of his colleagues in the Figaro. Highlighting his past as a local elected representative from the North and his modest roots, the minister knocks out the “technicians” who use “words that the French do not always understand” and the “bobo-liberal left” represented within the government.
“Gérald Darmanin is well aware of the shortcomings of Macronie, in particular on the anchoring of the middle and working classes, which allows the RN to prosper. Rightly or wrongly, Emmanuel Macron remains encysted in this image of “president of the rich”, despite whatever the cost or the redistributions”, adds Olivier Rouquan. “On this social aspect, one could however wonder about what Gérald Darmanin did for the working classes when he was Minister of the Budget”, nuances the political scientist.
… and annoys his colleagues
“We are in 2023, we are preparing for 2024 and 2027, it is a long way off,” Elisabeth Borne replied limply on Wednesday, yet targeted by her Minister of the Interior. The head of government, however, insisted on the necessary “unity of the majority”. Because the ambitions of the former mayor of Tourcoing are starting to annoy within the presidential camp. “Ideas must come before egos”, launches this Friday in The Parisian the secretary general of the Renaissance presidential party, Stéphane Séjourné. Stung, the person responds to the sulphate in the same newspaper. “I did not inherit any city, any constituency, I was not elected on a proportional list. I am, it is true, different: of modest origin and from an immigrant background, that may be embarrassing”.
“Gérald Darmanin will quickly come up against traditional government solidarity, because he remains under the authority of Elisabeth Borne. We remember the very violent duel between Sarkozy and Villepin for the 2007 presidential election, which lasted a while. Macronie will be subject to many tensions in the months to come ”, underlines Olivier Rouquan, while the immigration bill, studied at the start of the school year, should stir up friction.
It brings together and advocates the enlargement
For his meeting in Tourcoing, the first of its kind for a minister of Emmanuel Macron since 2017, Gérald Darmanin intends to show that he can gather more widely than his simple chapel. His entourage announces the presence of a hundred parliamentarians, including Laurent Marcangeli, the boss of the Horizons deputies, but also some elected Les Républicains. A dozen ministers should also be in the game. The Beauvau tenant also has kind words for the communist Fabien Roussel or the rebellious François Ruffin.
“He wants to show that he is gaining height, that he is not locked into the image of Nicolas Sarkozy’s successor”, notes Olivier Rouquan. “But it will be difficult to find the balance, because he will have to reposition himself on security issues and will not avoid sound bites,” he adds. On Twitter, François Ruffin targeted the minister on his responsibility in the rise of the National Rally. “Ten years of Macron-Darmanin-Philippe-Le Maire […] When the problem presents itself as the solution. A taste of the future presidential contest between the two men?