Bruno Retailleau has done something nobody expected. He has made himself the most serious contender for the French presidency, not by campaigning, but by governing. In a government few thought would last, under a president widely seen as disengaged and more focused on foreign stages than domestic affairs, Retailleau has taken the hardest job in the country and quietly mastered it. This week he was elected leader of Les Républicains with 74 per cent of the vote – a crushing result that signalled just how completely he has taken control of the party. He is already Minister of the Interior. Now he is starting to look like the man most likely to replace Macron.
Since entering government, he’s pushed through the most hardline immigration measures France has seen in years
At 64, Bruno Retailleau is not new to politics, but he has never looked more relevant. He’s methodical, uncompromising, and uninterested in theatrics.
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