EDITORIAL. Jordan Bardella, the youthful face of a far right not so smooth after all

His popularity is soaring, he addresses young people on Tiktok, takes care of his communication, but his image of an ideal son-in-law begins to be damaged by several revelations.

The National Rally (RN) list led by Jordan Bardella is at the top of the polls of voting intentions for the European elections with around 30% of intentions and around ten points ahead of the Renaissance list. The popularity rating of the president of the RN is also soaring, much higher than that of Marine Le Pen. And all this is the result of a well-oiled communication strategy.

Jordan Bardella presents a pleasant face. He uses the TikTok application to attract young people, increasing the number of selfie tours among his supporters. An image of the ideal son-in-law of the far right. Except that the revelations follow one another and damage this portrait of a smooth and smooth young man.

The latest revelation comes from the program “Complément d’investigation” on France 2 which revealed, Thursday January 18, the existence of a Twitter account managed by Jordan Bardella under the pseudonym RepNatdu Gaito. A false profile under which the person concerned made racist and homophobic comments. Jordan Bardella denies except that Marine Le Pen discreetly unsubscribed from this account as soon as this information was released. Using fake profiles on social networks to spread radical comments is common for far-right leaders. Marine Le Pen did this for years under various aliases.

Marine Le Pen’s replacement in the event of ineligibility?

And then, the newspaper Release has just confirmed that contrary to his assertions, Jordan Bardella continues to entrust the printing of RN campaign documents to Frédéric Chatillon, the former head of the GUD, a neofascist and anti-Semitic student union. This great friend of Marine Le Pen was convicted last year of fraud for overcharging for RN militant material in order to embezzle public funds.

In the long term, these revelations may perhaps damage his image within the traditional right-wing electorate to whom he looks up. On the other hand, his association with the identity movement, where he retains a number of friends, can also strengthen his popularity internally, among RN executives. However, next September, Marine Le Pen will be tried for embezzlement of public funds, as part of the affair of the fictitious assistants of the RN. She risks a penalty of ineligibility. With the support of all currents of the extreme right, including the most radical, Jordan Bardella would appear as the legitimate replacement in the event that his boss is prevented from running in 2027.