Event: French

Plans to insulate the French state from the influence of a populist presidency are deeply anti-democratic. With president Emmanuel Macron at the helm, the French political establishment is busy ‘Le Pen-proofing’ state institutions. This is an attempt to ensure that should the National Rally’s Marine Le Pen or Jordan Bardella become president, she or he would be unable to exercise much power. Macron and his cronies are understandably concerned about the threat posed to their rule by the right-wing populists of the National Rally. According to the opinion polls, a National Rally candidate stands a good chance of winning France’s 2027 presidential election. As it stands, that would be party president Jordan Bardella, given Marine Le Pen is currently banned from running for president, after being found guilty of embezzling European Parliament funds – although she is appealing the conviction. In response, Macron and his team are currently attempting to neutralise the impact of a potential National Rally presidency. They are encouraging those currently holding key posts in the French state to step down, and appointing their own people in their stead. As The Times notes, Macron allies are being appointed to head up every state institution, from the armed forces to the central bank, the Bank of France. Holders of these roles are usually protected from dismissal for five to seven years. So far, Macron has already replaced the head of the French armed forces with Fabien Mandon, his former personal military adviser. In an additional attempt to limit the influence of a National Rally president over French policy, Macron has also initiated a major reshuffle of 60 ambassadorial posts. Elsewhere, Pierre Moscovici has stepped down from the court of auditors, the supposedly independent body that oversees government spending. In his place is Macron ally and budget minister Amélie…