London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Jun 20, 2025

Far-right pundit Eric Zemmour to run for French president

Far-right pundit Eric Zemmour to run for French president

Candidate tries to re-energize campaign after recent stumbles.

Far-right TV pundit-turned-politician Eric Zemmour announced on social media on Tuesday that he is running in the French presidential election in April.

An anti-immigration hardliner who has twice been convicted for inciting hatred, Zemmour surged from nowhere to become a factor in the presidential contest in recent months. He had been widely expected to declare his candidacy after mounting a promotional book tour that doubled as a drive to drum up support for a presidential bid.

But Zemmour, 63, has struggled in recent weeks to keep his campaign on the rails. His poll numbers have dropped, allies have deserted him and he made a disastrous visit to the southern city of Marseille at the weekend, where he was pursued by protesters and pictured making an offensive one-fingered gesture from his car window to an unknown woman.

Zemmour, who will run as an independent candidate, is currently third in the presidential race, according to POLITICO’s Poll of Polls. Incumbent centrist Emmanuel Macron is in first place, followed by far-right leader Marine Le Pen.

In a 10-minute video released on Tuesday, Zemmour said that he took the decision to run for the presidency because “no other politician has the courage to save the country from the tragic destiny that awaits it.”

“I’ve decided to run in the presidential election so that our children and grandchildren don’t suffer barbarity, so that our girls won’t be veiled … so that they can inherit a France as it was known to our ancestors,” he said, reading from a statement at his desk.

But even his video rollout did not go according to plan. French TV channels were forced to pull the video from TV bulletins after it emerged film extracts had not been cleared with rights holders, according to news website Les Jours.

Many accuse Zemmour of stoking divisions and encouraging discrimination against France’s Muslim population. He has repeatedly argued that France is being “submerged” by immigration and is in danger of “losing its identity” under the influence of Islam, which he says is “incompatible” with western values.

Zemmour joins a presidential field that already includes Le Pen and is expected to be formally joined by Macron early next year. The conservative Les Républicains party will choose its presidential candidate in a primary election in the coming days.

The repercussions of Zemmour’s presidential run on the race are unclear at this early stage. But one possible consequence is that he will split the far-right vote, making it more difficult for him or Le Pen to reach a likely second-round run-off.

‘Exiled at home’


In his video message, set to Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7, Zemmour sat at a desk speaking into a large microphone, adopting a pose that recalled photographs of Charles de Gaulle broadcasting radio messages to the Free French during World War II.

He offered a dystopian vision of France’s future, playing on French history and on fears among French voters of loss of status.

“You walk in the streets of your town and you don’t recognize them (…), you pick up your daughter from school, you’re queueing for the dole, and you feel that you are no longer in the country that you knew,” he said, accompanied by images of present-day gang violence and past French glories.

To those who feel “exiled at home,” he promised to fight so that “the French would feel at home again” and blamed a decline of civilization, as well as immigration and impoverishment, as the main woes facing the country.

He also took a hit at his political opponents, accusing them of lacking courage.

“Macron presented himself as a new man, but he is like his predecessors, only worse,” he said. “And [all politicians] will only ever make meager reforms, but there is an emergency … it’s time to save France.”

While Zemmour’s message was being broadcast on social media, Macron tweeted a video about the singer Josephine Baker, who is to become the first black woman to enter France’s Pantheon mausoleum of revered French figures on Tuesday. French ministers have said Baker represents a French “universalism” that is color-blind.

Hugues Renson, a lawmaker from Macron’s La République en Marche party, tweeted that his video message was “disturbing” and looked like “bad advertising.”

Speaking on French TV channel CNews, Sébastien Chenu, spokesperson for Le Pen’s National rally criticized Zemmour’s “lack of credibility” and accused him of boosting Macron by drawing voters away from Le Pen.

French Trump?


Zemmour has been compared to Donald Trump due to his anti-establishment message and ability to deliver pithy one-liners that go viral. As with Trump, he also prompted debate about whether the media has helped his rise with blanket coverage.

His convictions for inciting hatred have led many to conclude he is unfit for high office. In 2011, Zemmour was fined for saying on French television that “drug dealers are mostly Blacks and Arabs” and this was why non-whites have their IDs checked “17 times a day.” In 2018, he was fined for inciting religious hatred over comments that all Muslims think jihadists are “good Muslims”.

His announcement on Tuesday was part of an effort re-energize his stuttering campaign and draw a line under recent controversies. Those have included a decision to sue a French magazine over a report that Sarah Knafo, his de facto campaign director, is pregnant with his child.

Zemmour, who is married, is trying to appeal to the traditionalist Catholic electorate ahead of April’s vote.

He is due to hold his first rally as a presidential candidate in Paris on Sunday in what his team hopes will be a show of strength, with several thousand expected to attend.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
16 Billion Login Credentials Leaked in Unprecedented Cybersecurity Breach
Senate hearing on who was 'really running' Biden White House kicks off
Iranian Military Officers Reportedly Seek Contact with Reza Pahlavi, Signal Intent to Defect
FBI and Senate Investigate Allegations of Chinese Plot to Influence the 2020 Election in Biden’s Favor Using Fake U.S. Driver’s Licenses
Vietnam Emerges as Luxury Yacht Destination for Ultra‑Rich
Plans to Sell Dutch Embassy in Bangkok Face Local Opposition
China's Iranian Oil Imports Face Disruption Amid Escalating Middle East Tensions
Trump's $5 Million 'Trump Card' Visa Program Draws Nearly 70,000 Applicants
DGCA Finds No Major Safety Concerns in Air India's Boeing 787 Fleet
Airlines Reroute Flights Amid Expanding Middle East Conflict Zones
Elon Musk's xAI Seeks $9.3 Billion in Funding Amid AI Expansion
Trump Demands Iran's Unconditional Surrender Amid Escalating Conflict
Israeli Airstrike Targets Iranian State TV in Central Tehran
President Trump is leaving the G7 summit early and has ordered the National Security Council to the Situation Room
Taiwan Imposes Export Ban on Chips to Huawei and SMIC
Israel has just announced plans to strike Tehran again, and in response, Trump has urged people to evacuate
Netanyahu Signals Potential Regime Change in Iran
Juncker Criticizes EU Inaction on Trump Tariffs
EU Proposes Ban on New Russian Gas Contracts
Analysts Warn Iran May Resort to Unconventional Warfare
Iranian Regime Faces Existential Threat Amid Conflict
Energy Infrastructure Becomes War Zone in Middle East
UK Home Secretary Apologizes Over Child Grooming Failures
Trump Organization Launches 5G Mobile Network and Golden Handset
Towcester Hosts 2025 English Greyhound Derby Amid Industry Scrutiny
Gary Oldman and David Beckham Knighted in King's Birthday Honours
Over 30,000 Lightning Strikes Recorded Across UK During Overnight Storms
Princess of Wales Returns to Public Duties at Trooping the Colour
Red Arrows Use Sustainable Fuel in Historic Trooping the Colour Flypast
Former Welsh First Minister Addresses Unionist Concerns Over Irish Language
Iran Signals Openness to Nuclear Negotiations Amid Ongoing Regional Tensions
France Bars Israeli Arms Companies from Paris Defense Expo
King Charles Leads Tribute to Air India Crash Victims at Trooping the Colour
Jack Pitchford Embarks on 200-Mile Walk to Support Stem Cell Charity
Surrey Hikers Take on Challenge of Climbing 11 Peaks in a Single Day
UK Deploys RAF Jets to Middle East Amid Israel-Iran Tensions
Two Skydivers Die in 'Tragic Accident' at Devon Airfield
Sainsbury's and Morrisons Accused of Displaying Prohibited Tobacco Ads
UK Launches National Inquiry into Grooming Gangs
Families Seek Closure After Air India Crash
Gold Emerges as Global Safe Haven Amid Uncertainty
Trump Reports $57 Million Earnings from Crypto Venture
Trump's Military Parade Sparks Concerns Over Authoritarianism
Nationwide 'No Kings' Protests Challenge Trump's Leadership
UK Deploys Jets to Middle East Amid Rising Tensions
Trump's Anti-War Stance Tested Amid Israel-Iran Conflict
Germany Holds First Veterans Celebration Since WWII
U.S. Health Secretary Dismisses CDC Vaccine Advisory Committee
Minnesota Lawmaker Melissa Hortman and Husband Killed in Targeted Attack; Senator John Hoffman and Wife Injured
Exiled Iranian Prince Reza Pahlavi Urges Overthrow of Khamenei Regime
×