This is a translation of the original article in Portuguese. Read the original (Português).
Judoka Teddy Riner, a three-time Olympic champion, announced that he will run in France’s 2027 presidential election. The announcement comes amid a wave of protests over wages, inflation and education that, according to part of the French press, weakens centrist candidates.
Riner presents himself as an alternative to traditional politicians and says he is neither left nor right, according to the newspaper Le Monde. He says he wants to rebuild the country, admits he has no political experience, and will need to gather 500 signatures from elected officials to register his candidacy. According to the German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, he advocates pension reform and an end to the 35-hour workweek.
The newspaper Le Parisien reports that the athlete intends to maintain his preparation for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, with maintenance training and two training camps starting in January. Sponsorship contracts and the use of public funds for his Olympic preparation remain open questions. Le Monde adds that the candidacy comes with questions about an investigation linked to an air transport company.
The newspaper Libération reports that the announcement was praised by Emmanuel Macron and Gabriel Attal and caused unease on the right. A poll by the Ifop institute indicates that 70% of respondents have a favorable opinion of the judoka.
Voting intention polls, however, call for caution. In a hypothetical Ifop scenario, Riner would get around 22%; in a survey by the Cluster 17 institute, he appears with just 2%. The campaign is still in the pre-candidacy phase, and the scenarios tested vary.
That same week, Éric Zemmour confirmed on a TV program that he will also run, according to the newspaper L’Opinion, which gives him 3% to 4% of voting intentions. On the traditional right, Bruno Retailleau proposed a primary with the center on January 31, while the mayor of Cannes, David Lisnard, who places ahead of him in some polls, wants to move the calendar forward, reports the newspaper Le Figaro.
On the streets, the picture is different. L’Humanité, a left-leaning newspaper, devoted its front page to social mobilization and claims that about 1.6 million people protested in Paris on November 5, with participation from students, unions and the yellow vests. For the paper, social demands have imposed themselves on the campaign, although it is still unclear whether they will have an effect at the ballot box. L’Opinion, a liberal-leaning paper, focused its coverage on the candidacies.
The American magazine Time recalls that in October, protests against education cuts and the cost of living turned into riots, with more than 2,000 people arrested, more than 600 police officers and firefighters injured, and localized curfews.
At the top of the polls remains Marine Le Pen. The Swiss newspaper Neue Zürcher Zeitung reports that the National Rally is preparing a program with less immigration, harsher sentences, referendums, and a reduction of the retirement age from 64 to 62, and that surveys point to a Le Pen victory in a possible runoff against Jean-Luc Mélenchon.
Reporting from Le Monde (p. 1, 11 e 12), Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (p. 3), Le Parisien (p. 6 e 15), Libération (p. 5), L’Opinion (p. 4), Le Figaro (p. 4), L’Humanité (p. 1 e 2), Time USA (p. 13), Neue Zürcher Zeitung (p. 3).
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