Around 28 years old, he has become France’s most popular young politician, challenging the long-standing leadership of Marine Le Pen and testing the Macronist status quo. In this year’s European elections, Jordan Bardella delivered the strongest showing for the French far-right in modern times, securing 33% of the vote.
Known by some outlets as “Mr. Perfect”, Bardella is seen as the ideal face for a far-right movement scarred by corruption allegations, antisemitism convictions, and controversial statements. He represents the audacious ace the Le Pen camp needed to reach a fractured France, tapping into a climate of insecurity, public spending cuts, and inflation.
Born to parents with Italian roots, Bardella grew up in the northern Paris suburb of Saint-Denis, in a building where drugs were sold. His background stands in stark contrast to that of the more affluent prime minister, Gabriel Attal. He argues that insecurity and a sense of lost national identity pushed him to join the National Rally at the age of 16. “I grew up in a tough city; I know the realities of the neighborhoods. I’m the heir to Marine’s political line, yes, but I have my own sensitivities that can differ at times”, the politician told journalist Pierre-Stéphane Fort, who has followed him for years and now authored a book, Le Grand Remplaçant. In 2024, he was named France’s preferred politician by Ifop.
Fort challenges Bardella’s narrative, suggesting his rhetoric is a product of professional marketing. Bardella’s background includes private schooling, a bourgeois father who enjoys a comfortable life, and a family that shaped much of his public image. Fort notes that Bardella often emphasizes his mother in his story but rarely discusses his father.
In a remarkably short time, the young man won the confidence of the Le Pen circle, moving from party member to spokesperson at age 22 and then to vice president two years later. The ties extend beyond formal roles: Bardella is romantically involved with Nolwenn Olivier, Marine Le Pen’s niece, a fact that underscores how deeply he is woven into the family’s political circle.
The Ghost Deputy
At 23, Bardella was named the lead candidate for the National Rally in the 2019 European elections and since then has held seat 41 in the European Parliament. Colleagues in Brussels and Strasbourg refer to him as the “ghost deputy.” Bardella serves on only one committee, while most deputies sit on two or three. He belongs to the Committee on Petitions, a panel sometimes dubbed the “committee of the unseen,” because it receives citizen petitions and forwards them to other committees. According to Pierre-Stéphane Fort, Bardella has missed about 70% of the time in that committee over five years.
Between 2019 and the end of 2023, Bardella missed 35 of 51 committee sessions, with 13 conducted via videoconference. His legislative footprint is modest: while rival Manon Aubry from France Insoumise filed thousands of amendments, Bardella filed only a few dozen. Fort argues that Bardella’s mandate centers on speeches in the European Parliament, three days a month during plenary sessions, which are recorded and then shared on social media to boost his visibility. It amounts to a comfortable stipend of roughly 7,500 euros per month for the party’s designated leader.
Incoherent Proposals and a Nebulous Program
In a relatively short period, the National Rally has shifted from a party frequently associated with extremism and fear to gaining broader appeal among some voters. Fort describes Bardella’s vote as a form of political signaling aimed at shaping public opinion about the government and President Macron. He notes that Bardella’s campaign messages sometimes resemble a list of trial balloons rather than a coherent platform.
During the European campaign, Bardella did not lay out his detailed program or explain how he would implement his famed “double border” idea or the scrapping of the European Green Deal. He has also struggled to justify a shift from advocating a Frexit to seeking to remain in the European Union under certain conditions. Clement Beaune, a former minister responsible for Europe, has suggested Bardella promotes ideas already discussed during his term and sometimes contradicts himself. “Your program is a scratch-and-win trick, but when you scratch, you find nothing behind it,” Attal told Bardella during a recent European election debate.
In every vote, the young leader has rejected or abstained on the most pressing issues facing the French. He presents as a defender of women’s rights while voting against the condemnation of Poland’s abortion ban and abstaining on measures addressing pay equality. He speaks about fighting climate change but consistently opposed environmental protections in the European Parliament. On the Ukraine conflict, he claims support for Ukraine but has not voted in favor of sanctions against Russia.
A Full TikTok and an Empty Program
“His personality attracts new voters,” notes political scientist Jean-Yves Camus. With around 1.3 million followers on TikTok, Bardella projects a close, smiling, approachable image tailored to younger audiences. Short videos are edited to emphasize cadence and rhythm, while other clips feel spontaneous, like behind-the-scenes glimpses from a hotel room or event backstage. This strategy helps him connect with 18 to 24-year-olds without alienating traditional far-right supporters.
One veteran media strategist described the approach as making Bardella a likable fascist—someone people listen to and then adopt the ideas of the National Rally.
In domestic politics, Bardella has managed to lessen Marine Le Pen’s prominence, sometimes making the longtime leader appear secondary. His recent European victory opens the door for the far right to aim for France’s presidential election in 2027.
“Do the French really want to entrust the country’s future to a 28-year-old who has not completed higher education, who has never worked in a company, and who has not invested in his elected mandates? Popularity is not everything,” Fort emphasizes. In France, most observers agree that this perfectly smiling, ambitious young man will go far. Bardella has filled a vacancy that others could not, and, at least superficially through TikTok videos, he has managed to reach voters who feel tired, disillusioned, and detached from politics.