Jordan Bardella: heir of France's Le Pen at just 27

Jordan Bardella: heir of France's Le Pen at just 27 

Jordan Bardella, a self-confident 27-year-old, looks set this weekend to confirm he is the rising star of France's far-right politics and the favoured heir to veteran leader Marine Le Pen. The Paris-born politician is odds-on to be selected by members of the anti-immigration National Rally (RN) party as their new president at a congress on Saturday. Le Pen decided to step back from the role after 11 years at the helm. Formerly known as the National Front, the party had been run by Le Pen's father Jean-Marie for 40 years before that. Bardella would be the first party chief outside the family dynasty in a half-century. "The fact the party president will not have the name Le Pen is the sign of openness and confidence that Marine has in the new generation," Bardella told AFP during a recent trip to eastern France. Not that the ultra-loyal protege, who was elected to the European parliament in 2019, is planning to try to overshadow her. "I am a continuity candidate, with the aim of building on the incredible legacy that Marine is handing over," he added. He expects and wants Le Pen to take a fourth run at the presidency in 2027 after her record 41.5 percent in April's election run-off against President Emmanuel Macron. She then fronted the party's parliamentary election campaign in June which saw the RN capture 89 seats, a 10-fold rise making it the biggest opposition party in the national assembly. Source