Darmanin says a Mélenchon or Le Pen win would 'kill Europe as it exists'

The French justice minister backed Édouard Philippe for 2027 and called for a Europe of power, not discussion, at a Barcelona event with Spain's foreign minister.

French Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin warned in Barcelona on 2 November that Jean-Luc Mélenchon or Marine Le Pen would 'kill Europe as it exists' if either wins the 2027 presidential election. If that happened, he said, there would still be a European continent and countries talking to each other, but no European Community. His test for the next French head of state: build a Europe that is a power, not a Europe of discussion.

Darmanin's case: Europe is falling behind in the world, and France is falling behind in Europe. French debates, he told his audience, are often debates of the old, about pensions, health insurance and how life ends. The world, he said, discusses quantum physics, artificial intelligence and climate. France, he argued, needs to swap these old debates for debates about the future.

Darmanin judged that the political projects of Mélenchon and Le Pen are extremely clear, and are built on the end of that Europe. He called for someone very pro-European to win the presidential election, whose first round is set for 18 April 2027. Winning it, in his argument, would make it possible to change Europe.

Darmanin put a name to the sort of candidate he wants: Édouard Philippe, whom he supports for the 2027 presidential election. If Marine Le Pen, leader of the Rassemblement National, wins, he warned, there would be no Europe as we know it. He called on Europe to defend itself.

Darmanin spoke on 2 November with Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares at World in Progress Barcelona about Europe's political future. There he called on European states to rearm autonomously. Transform Europe, he said, into a Europe of power rather than a Europe of discussion.