‘Macron’s Child’… Will Gabriel Attal Inherit the Keys to the Élysée Palace?
In a rapid and unexpected ascent, French Minister of Education Gabriel Attal has become the frontrunner to succeed President Emmanuel Macron at the Élysée Palace.
Attal, known as “Macron’s Child” due to his strong loyalty to the current French president, has surged in a new opinion poll conducted by IFOP, becoming the preferred candidate to lead Macron’s party, “La République En Marche,” in the upcoming presidential elections scheduled for 2027.
According to the poll, Attal surpassed former Prime Minister Édouard Philippe, who had remained the favorite in surveys for a long time.
The British newspaper “The Telegraph” reported that Attal, seen as the “rising star” within Macron‘s party, also surpassed figures such as Gérald Darmanin, the Minister of the Interior, and Bruno Le Maire, the Minister of Finance.
The company surveyed a thousand participants about their preferred candidate, with the results showing that Attal received 57% of voter approval, followed closely by Édouard Philippe with 55%.
In third place came Darmanin, followed by Le Maire, and Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne rounded out the top five positions.
Rapid Ascent After being appointed as Minister of Education in July of last year, Attal issued a series of prominent decisions, including a ban on wearing the headscarf in public schools.
The decision was seen as a strong statement following the riots that erupted across the country during the summer, renewing social and racial tensions between French youth and the police.
His appointment angered the left, accusing Attal of not understanding the public school system because he had attended private schools.
In response, Attal stated, “Yes, I went to a private school, and I don’t have to deny it or apologize for it,” calling on his critics not to criticize parents who make this choice.
Attal’s father worked as a lawyer before transitioning to film production, and his mother also works in the same field.
Attal’s rapid rise in French politics began when he joined the Socialist Party (left) at the age of 23 and worked as an advisor in the Ministry of Health during François Hollande’s tenure.
In 2017, he joined the party launched by Macron, “La République En Marche,” which is now known as La République En Marche Renaissance (LREM), and he earned the nickname “Macron‘s Child.”
In 2018, at the age of 29, he became a State Secretary in the Ministry of Education, making him the youngest member of the cabinet during the Fifth Republic.
Between 2020 and 2022, Attal served as the government spokesperson and became a familiar and regular face on French television during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Later, he briefly served as Minister Delegate responsible for public accounts in 2022 before joining the French government as the Minister of Education in the latest ministerial reshuffle in July of last year.
France is set to hold its next presidential elections in 2027, but by then, Macron will not be eligible to run for a third term according to the French constitution, which limits presidential terms to two.
If he wins the presidency, Gabriel Attal will be 38 years old, breaking the record set by his mentor Macron and taking the title of the youngest president in French history by just one year.
