On the 9th local time, 34-year-old Gabriel Attar was appointed by Macron as the new prime minister of France, he is not only the youngest prime minister in French history, but also the first head of France to publicly recognize homosexual sexual orientation.
According to Agence France-Presse, Macron intends to use a new prime minister to kick-start his next five-year term that "constantly seeks momentum". Therefore, how Atal will give full play to his strengths in the next premiership, balancing the most powerful forces, has become the focus of attention from all walks of life.
Macron's best business card".
After announcing his new appointment, Macron said through social media**, "I can count on your (Atar's) energy and commitment to push forward the revitalization and revival projects that I have proposed." In line with the spirit of 2017: transcendence and boldness. Most of France's first names Attar "Macron's good student", and former French Prime Minister Raffarin said that "he is one of the best business cards".
Back in September, the French weekly Opinion published an article titled "Attar, the new Macron? As the first generation of "political prodigy", Macron was elected the youngest ** in France at the age of 39, and now he has promoted a "charismatic and aggressive" education minister like him. Mathilde Pano, MP of the "Indomitable France" party, said on social media on the 9th: "Macron's decision to appoint Macron Jr. confirms the adage 'It is better to ask for others than for yourself'." In fact, Attar can indeed be regarded as Macron's "own man", and soon after entering politics, he followed Macron and his leadership of the Republican Forward Party (later renamed the Baath Party), and in just over ten years, he went from an intern to a prime minister.
According to French media, Attar, who was born into a wealthy family, stepped into the ** in 2006 and joined Macron's party in 2016, becoming a highly respected spokesman, setting a record of "the youngest in history" along the way. Regardless of political experience or rhetoric, Attar is quite similar to Macron, and Attar himself bluntly said in his inaugural speech that "the youngest in French history has appointed the youngest prime minister", as if he is the first person of the younger generation of "bold" and "action" spirit.
Maillard, an associate researcher in the European program at Chatham House in the United Kingdom, told the Washington Post that "Atal is Macron 20", Macron hopes to benefit from the young and promising Attar.
Anti-school bullying" wins favor.
Since assuming the post of Minister of National Education and Youth in July 2023, the young minister's standing in the public has skyrocketed. He announced the reinstatement of the repetition system, the implementation of "anti-bullying", school uniforms and other reforms, in response to the French people's concerns about the deterioration of the quality of education.
It is worth mentioning that in response to school bullying, Attar "appeared on TV" and revealed his experience of being bullied because of his sexual orientation, arousing the attention of all walks of life to the problem of school bullying and gaining the favor of students and parents.
According to the latest poll by France TV, 56% of French people choose to trust Attar. At the political level, apart from some opposition parties who believe that Atal is inexperienced and incompetent to be prime minister, the political camps are generally positive about the appointment.
The leader of the National League, Jordan Bardra, believes that Macron wants to stop public opinion with new appointments, but he may drag Atal into a quagmire". And the French newspaper Le Figaro commented that "Attar is a bet on Macron's reboot, hoping to dispel doubts about the direction of his five-year term by appointing a young, popular and **focused prime minister." ”
However, according to the Spanish newspaper El País, there are rumors that when Attar was nominated, France's ** Le Maire, ruling party MP Eduard Philippe, and former education minister François Beroux all expressed opposition. And French Interior Minister Darmanin privately said that Atal "is the most Macronist of us." According to El País, Le Maire, Philippe and Darmanin share "ambitions to be the first to serve".
Closing the gap with the far right.
France's BFM TV said that Attar was appointed prime minister at a time when Macron was facing a series of serious challenges, and his mission was to restructure a new and efficient cabinet to meet the challenges and fulfill a series of promises made by Macron when he ran again.
The Washington Post said that while Attar appears to be "having a smooth ride," he will face a tough test in the coming months. On the one hand, Macron and his party do not have a majority in parliament, so Jetaba Rahman, managing director for European affairs at the Eurasia Group, an American think tank, said that the appointment of Attar "indicates that the phase of radical reforms in the Macron era is over" and that he had to move to a moderate, co-consultative phase.
On the other hand, in the 2024 European Parliament elections, with the French far right leading in the polls, Atal "will be the de facto spokesman for Macronism." Rahman said that Macron wants to close the gap with Jordan Baldra, the successor of far-right leader Marine Le Pen, who is only 28 years old and also has a high appearance rate.
Maillard told The Washington Post that the competition between Atal and Bardra will be stronger than "the rivalry between Macron and Marine Le Pen in previous elections", and if Attar wins this competition, he will rightfully become "Macron's successor" in France in 2027.