French Socialists split over primary rules as Mélenchon rallies far-left allies for 2027 presidential bid

Socialist deadlock

The Parti socialiste (PS) remains deeply fractured over how to pick its 2027 presidential nominee. A National Council meeting on Tuesday 30 June ended without consensus, so the party will put two competing options to a membership ballot on 9 July. First secretary Olivier Faure backs an open primary that would include Les Écologistes and other left-wing forces outside La France insoumise (LFI), with sympathisers able to vote for a €2 fee. His internal rival, parliamentary group leader Boris Vallaud, wants a closed contest limited to PS members and organisations that identify as part of the “socialist pole”, such as Place publique, leaving the door open to Raphaël Glucksmann or Bernard Cazeneuve. Vallaud’s camp envisages a candidate being designated by October.

“The candidacy of our political family should be designated through a vote open to Socialist Party and Place publique members as well as our sympathisers, with a €2 participation fee.”

A crowded field

The PS is also grappling with a proliferation of would-be candidates. Deputy Philippe Brun announced his bid on 30 June, joining Jérôme Guedj, Karim Bouamrane, and potentially Olivier Faure or former president François Hollande. Raphaël Glucksmann has given himself three months to try to unite the centre-left. The party’s 2022 score of 1.7% hangs over the contest, yet the number of aspirants keeps growing.

“I will be a candidate in the internal primary to carry a popular line.”

Mélenchon on the march

While the PS squabbles, Jean-Luc Mélenchon is already campaigning for his fourth presidential run. The 75-year-old LFI leader has drawn new allies: the faction of the Nouveau parti anticapitaliste loyal to Olivier Besancenot and Philippe Poutou has endorsed him, and he is courting Green MEP Sandrine Rousseau and Communist parliamentary leader Stéphane Peu. His Saint-Denis rally generated momentum, and his strategy of absorbing far-left groups (the Parti ouvrier indépendant, the Jeune Garde antifasciste) has widened his base.

“The more the Socialists keep bickering, the more Jean-Luc Mélenchon can hope to attract their voters.”

Polls and pitfalls

Despite the organisational edge, polls still show Mélenchon far from certain to reach the second round. In 2022 he swept up the left-wing vote because he appeared the only candidate capable of facing Emmanuel Macron. This time the landscape is more fragmented, and his radical turn may limit his appeal beyond the core left.

Programme first

Amid the procedural chaos, the PS has tried to shift the debate by unveiling a new policy platform on 30 June, adopted with 83% member support after a year of consultations. Olivier Faure argues the party now has a “legitimate, endorsed candidate” in the form of its programme, and whoever emerges from the selection process will be bound by it. The approach echoes Gabriel Attal’s earlier call to settle the “what” before the “who”.