"She doesn't scare me": Édouard Philippe "wants to beat Marine Le Pen" in 2027

A declared candidate for the Élysée, former Prime Minister Édouard Philippe said he "wanted to beat" Marine Le Pen at the polls, who "doesn't scare" him, in a long interview broadcast on Sunday February 23 on LCI.

"I think we can propose a project to the French that is more convincing than what she says," said the president of the Horizons party from his office in Le Havre, the city of which he is mayor.

He was asked about the possibility that the president of the National Rally could be declared ineligible by a court decision before the 2027 presidential election.

"I want to beat Marine Le Pen," he replied. "I have no desire to give her any gifts whatsoever in terms of elections, in terms of political debate. And she doesn't scare me politically." However, "it seems useful to me that magistrates apply the law," he added.

Also questioned about the current Minister of the Interior Bruno Retailleau, who is doing well in the polls, Edouard Philippe considered that he was "someone competent, sincere, reliable", with whom "it is possible to work", saying that he was "probably more liberal than him".

The former Prime Minister also considered that it was preferable to "guarantee stability" rather than face a possible new dissolution before the presidential election.

"But we must not be mistaken, not much will happen" between now and then, and that is "dangerous," he said. "The conclusion I draw from this is that it is imperative to prepare and to propose clear guidelines to the French when the time comes."

Among those detailed, he considered that it was necessary to "regain control" of immigration, "find another system of financing" pensions, or even "completely revisit public policies that do not work and which are expensive".

On the international level, he considered that the presence of French troops in Ukraine as a "security guarantee" within the framework of a peace agreement could be "a good option".

Edouard Philippe said he "took his time" before deciding to run for president. And he concluded the interview in a tone of defiance: "Good luck changing my mind."