Jean-Luc Mélenchon, leader of La France insoumise, announced his fourth run for the 2027 presidential election on Sunday evening during TF1's 20 heures news. He conditions his candidacy on gathering 150,000 citizen endorsements, seen as a mere formality. The decision follows a meeting of LFI elected officials in Paris that day.
Jean-Luc Mélenchon launched his fourth bid for the Élysée, following runs in 2012, 2017, and 2022. In the TF1 interview with Anne-Claire Coudray, he stated: «LFI, c’est carré, il y a une équipe, un programme et un seul candidat». He added that «le contexte et l’urgence ont fixé la décision insoumise», positioning himself as «le mieux préparé» against the «menace d’une guerre généralisée».
The announcement stems from Sunday's Paris meeting of LFI elected officials to select the movement's 2027 candidate. On Friday, during his May 1 speech, Mélenchon declared: «Nous sommes prêts !». At nearly 75, the former Marseille deputy remains engaged in public debate despite ceding his seat to Manuel Bompard.
In 2022, he secured nearly 22% of votes, missing the runoff by 420,000 ballots. He targets the Rassemblement national as his «principal adversaire», claiming he can beat it «à plate couture». Yet, an Ifop-Fiducial poll from late April shows only 16% of French people want his candidacy.
