Culture Society, Identity and Belonging
Napoleon made himself emperor of the French at 35. But the crown for the nation’s youngest leader just passed to President Macron’s protégée, Gabriel Attal, appointed prime minister yesterday at the age of 34. He is a striking choice. Part Tunisian Jewish, part Greek-Russian and openly gay, Attal was educated in Paris’s plush sixth arrondissement. A few years ago, he was an advisor in the health ministry. But he steamrolled through the ranks, thanks in large part to his communication skills, dashing looks and his boss’s priority: wresting back voters from Marie Le Pen’s far-right Rassemblement National (RN). Macron’s Renaissance party is trailing the RN by about ten points in polls and June’s EU parliamentary elections are fast approaching. Attal is seen as a good bet for winning back right-wing, anti-immigration voters and carrying Macron’s bruised legacy forward.