In search of regeneration, Macron names Gabriel Attal prime minister, France’s youngest at 34
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One of the country’s most popular politicians in recent opinion polls, Mr Gabriel Attal has made a name for himself as a savvy minister.
PHOTO: AFP
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PARIS - French President Emmanuel Macron named 34-year-old Gabriel Attal as his new prime minister on Jan 9, seeking to breathe new life into his second mandate ahead of European Parliament elections.
Mr Attal becomes the youngest prime minister in French history, and the first to be openly gay.
His nomination will not necessarily lead to any major political shift, but signals a desire by Mr Macron to try to move beyond the unpopular pension and immigration reforms of 2023 and improve his centrist party’s chances in the June European Union ballot.
“Dear @GabrielAttal, I know I can count on your energy and your commitment to implement the project of revitalisation and regeneration that I announced,” Mr Macron wrote on the social media platform X, formerly Twitter.
Shorn of a working majority in Parliament, Mr Macron has battled to push through a second-term reform agenda that has drifted to the right as he seeks to shore up support among conservative voters to counter the growing popularity of the far right.
The president’s ruling party trails far-right leader Marine Le Pen’s party by around eight to ten percentage points in opinion polls.
Mr Macron, 46, and Mr Attal have a combined age just below that of Mr Joe Biden, who is running for a second term in this year’s United States presidential election.
Mr Attal has polled as one of France’s most popular politicians in recent months.
A loyalist of Mr Macron, he became a household name in French politics as government spokesman during the Covid-19 pandemic and earned a reputation as a smooth communicator.
Mr Attal replaces Ms Elisabeth Borne,
A dutiful and hard-working technocrat, her 1½ years in office had been marked by months of protests over a pension overhaul and riots over the police shooting of a teenager of North African descent
Mr Macron and Mr Attal may take several days to name a new government. An Elysee aide said the usual Jan 10 Cabinet meeting was unlikely this week.
In recent weeks, Mr Macron, who has struggled to deal with a more turbulent Parliament since being re-elected in 2022, had signalled that it was time for change.
However, his opponents and some voters were sceptical.
“By appointing Gabriel Attal... Emmanuel Macron wants to cling to his popularity in opinion polls to alleviate the pain of an interminable end to his reign,” said Mr Jordan Bardella, the 28-year-old leader of Ms Le Pen’s National Rally party.
Mr Macron called the shots in French politics, said Parisian Sophie Varillon. “What does the reshuffle change for us? Personally, not much,” she added.
But MP Patrick Vignal, from Mr Macron’s Renaissance party, said Mr Attal is “a bit like the Macron of 2017”, referring to the point at which the President first took office as the youngest leader in modern French history, at the time a popular figure among voters.
Mr Attal “is clear, he has authority”, Mr Vignal said. REUTERS
