On May 1, at the Palais des Congrès in Perpignan, Julie and Lorna, both 17, struggled to hide their excitement. The two friends made the trip with one idea in mind: to see their idol “in real life.” They weren’t waiting to see a world-famous pop star, but a politician about to recite a populist speech with xenophobic overtones: Jordan Bardella. As they’re both too young, neither of them will be voting in the European elections on June 9. They are also not members of Rassemblement National (RN) and have no intention of joining. Their passion for Bardella is evident on social media, where they like, comment and share each of his actions and gestures. Their dream? A selfie with “Jordan,” which they would quickly share on TikTok and Instagram.

At 28, Bardella, who replaced Marine Le Pen as head of the far-right party in 2022, has succeeded in touching the hearts and minds of a section of the young generation, despite their widespread political skepticism. According to the Ipsos survey conducted for Le Monde from April 19 to 24, around a third of 18-24 year olds (32%) likely to vote on June 9 intend to cast a ballot for Bardella, the same proportion as for the general electoral population. Young people, who traditionally put up strong resistance to far-right ideas, are no longer the exception.

But these figures need to be put into perspective, pointed out Anne Muxel, director of research at CEVIPOF (Center for Political Research at Sciences Po university). “These intentions concern those who are going to vote, but abstention is very high: Only three out of 10 young people go to the polls. Not all young people vote for the RN! But the fact that Jordan Bardella is in the lead is significant.”

Le Monde met high-schoolers, students and young workers across France to find out why the anti-RN sentiment diminished among young people who, even 20 years ago, told the far-right party to “go fuck itself,” to quote a popular song from the 80s by punk band Bérurier Noir. Some of these young people (who asked to be quoted anonymously), generally from working-class backgrounds, talked about their sense of “rediscovered pride,” the hope of finally being considered for what they are and what they do, in areas that feel neglected by the state and political leaders. Others made no secret of their lack of interest in political news.

Flurry of selfies

Haute-Saône in eastern France is a predominantly rural department whose two constituencies switched from supporting Macron to the RN in the first round of the 2022 legislative elections. Here, Bardella’s confident smile and “Vivement le 9 juin!” (“Can’t wait till June 9!”) slogan are on display at the edge of the roadsides. Some people were still talking about his visit to the city of Vesoul for the Sainte-Catherine agricultural fair on November 25, when he was greeted by a flurry of selfies.

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