French politics had descended into a Gallic War of the Roses. Instead of English royal dynasties, our factions are the political parties competing for control of parliament, and our pretenders to the throne are the warring leaders of the French left. But, oddly enough, one English knight of the realm has crossed the Channel to take a starring role: Sir Keir Starmer.
Some backstory: On 7 July, the left came out on top in France’s parliamentary elections. The New Popular Front (NFP), a leftist alliance that ranges from anti-capitalists to social democrats, bagged 178 seats. Although they had fallen short of winning a majority, NFP chieftains were triumphant. They went on TV and declared they would form the next government. The next prime minister, they repeated over and over, would come from their ranks.
Cut to two weeks later, and a new prime minister has yet to be appointed. Even worse, the NFP is divided on who they want for the job. And this is because the NFP is an electoral hodgepodge made up of four parties. There is the far-left “France Unbowed” of Jean-Luc Mélenchon; the Green Party; the Communist Party, which despite its name is pretty tame these days; and the moderate Socialist Party, historically the dominant force on the French left.
These bedfellows have found it difficult to find common ground. France Unbowed wanted Mélenchon to become prime minister, but that was a non-starter. He is political kryptonite. An ex-Trotskyist, Mélenchon is an egomaniac who sees traitors in every corner of his party. On top of it all, he has been stoking the flames of antisemitism. In the wake of the 7 October pogroms, he refused to call Hamas a “terrorist organisation”. Although antisemitism is soaring in France, he has said it “remains residual”.
Mélenchon has gone on to back Huguette Bello, a little-known politician from La Réunion, for prime minister. But the Socialists turned her down. Then, with the support of the Communists and the Greens, the Socialists pitched Laurence Tubiana, the architect of the Paris climate agreement. But France Unbowed wouldn’t have it: Tubiana wasn’t radical enough. The French left is going through a civil war between hardliners and moderates. The hardliners are led by Mélenchon, the moderates are in desperate need of a leader.
Enter Prime Minister Starmer, who is fast emerging as the role model for this rudderless faction. Centre-left commentators are in awe of his achievements. They hail him for detoxifying the Labour Party after Jeremy Corbyn’s tenure and winning a thumping majority last month. They are hoping a French Starmer could do the same with Mélenchon and the NFP.
Take Caroline Fourest, an influential journalist. She is the editor of Franc-Tireur, a new weekly paper flying off the shelves. “We must ‘decorbynise’ the left, and fast!” Fourest wrote. As she sees it, the NFP will never be able to beat the National Rally, Marine Le Pen’s far-right party, until they do so. “If they think they can counter the National Rally in the long term without putting Jean-Luc Mélenchon and his clique out of action, then they’re living in a parallel reality.”
Franc-Tireur also ran a laudatory article on Starmer’s transformation of Labour. Journalist Emma-Kate Symons praised the prime minister for taking Labour back “towards the moderate centre” after the far-left drift of the Corbyn years. She celebrated “a dignified and credible left, savouring its first victory in years over a scattered conservative camp, thanks to ‘decorbynisation’”. Her message: “What a lesson for the French left!” Or take Anne Sinclair, France’s Jeremy Paxman. “In the United Kingdom, they got rid of their Mr. Mélenchon, who was Mr. Corbyn,” Sinclair said approvingly. “They are ahead of us. We will need to do the same thing.” She added, “It’s a job that the left will have to do.”
Sinclair has a point: For the French left to broaden its appeal, it needs to go full Starmer. France Unbowed is a massive liability. Mélenchon and his henchmen encourage sectarianism and spur antisemitism. If that isn’t bad enough, their modus operandi is “le clash”: they are vociferous and outrageous. So much so they have made the National Rally look respectable in comparison. Until the left repudiates France Unbowed, it won’t get the support of the working classes who vote for the far-right or the middle-classes who vote for Macron’s centre.
So, who could be the French Starmer? It’s too early to say, but a couple of figures fancy reviving the fortunes of the moderate left ahead of the 2027 presidential elections. There is Raphaël Glucksmann, who won plaudits for spearheading the Socialist campaign in the last EU elections and came a surprising third with 14%. An Atlanticist, he is young and forward-looking. “I want to build a great social democratic force,” Glucksmann said this month.
There is also François Hollande, the former Socialist president who has made a comeback as an MP for the NFP. “I have no ambition other than to serve the country,” Hollande said, “but above all to ensure our country resembles the idea we have of it.” Rumours abound that he is hoping to run for the Elysée again. And don’t count Tubiana out either: if she does become prime minister, she could prove to be a force to be reckoned with. With the election over, the game of thrones is just beginning – and whoever seizes Starmer’s mantle will likely win it.
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