French Socialist Leader Vallaud Backs Glucksmann for 2027, Skips Left Primary in France

Boris Vallaud, the leader of the Socialist Party (PS) deputies in France's National Assembly, announced on Thursday, August 27, that he will not run in the left's primary for the 2027 presidential election and will instead back Raphaël Glucksmann, the leader of the Place Publique party. In a letter to Socialist Party members, published by the socialist media outlet Le Nouveau Populaire and obtained exclusively by, Vallaud wrote: I choose to support the candidacy that seems to me the most serious, asking myself only one question: who is best placed and best prepared to lead this presidential battle? To this question, I answer with the name of Raphaël Glucksmann.

The announcement comes on the eve of the PS's summer days in Blois, a key gathering for the party. Vallaud's decision marks a significant development in the left's preparations for the 2027 presidential race, as the party seeks to unify behind a single candidate. Glucksmann, who leads Place Publique, a progressive political movement, now gains a prominent supporter from within the Socialist Party's parliamentary group as the left gears up for the presidential contest.