PARIS, Feb 26 (Reuters) – Former French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe could lose his seat as mayor of the port city of Le Havre in municipal elections next month, an opinion poll showed, dealing a potential blow to his presidential ambitions for 2027.
The centrist Philippe, who served as President Emmanuel Macron’s premier until 2020, was until now the best-placed mainstream candidate to beat the far-right National Rally candidate in next year’s presidential election, according to most opinion polls.
According to the OpinionWay poll for the Hexagone Institute, released late on Wednesday, Philippe would come first with 37% in the first round of the mayoral vote, but would ultimately be edged out by Communist candidate Jean-Paul Lecoq in the second round.
Philippe himself said recently defeat in the municipal election would hurt his chances for the presidential poll.
“If I fail to convince the people of Le Havre, despite the fact I have been their mayor since 2010 and they know me well…, I wouldn’t be in a good position to convince the French,” he told LCI television in December.
Philippe has consistently polled as the best-placed candidate to beat a far-right candidate, whether it was Marine Le Pen or her protege Jordan Bardella, even if recent polls have been very tight.
In an Ifop poll last April, he was neck-and-neck with Bardella at 50% each. One Odoxa poll last November even showed Bardella winning with 53%.
(Reporting by Michel Rose; Editing by Alex Richardson)
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