By Elizabeth Pineau and Gabriel Stargardter
PARIS, Feb 12 (Reuters) - Bruno Retailleau, a former French interior minister and head of the centre-right Republicans party, announced on Thursday he will run for president in the 2027 election, the latest figure to try their luck succeeding President Emmanuel Macron.
Retailleau said in an address on his social media channels that France had become weak at a time when superpower predators were preying on the world. In an apparent dig at Macron, who cannot run again in 2027 after serving two consecutive terms, he said France had been hobbled by "technocratic excesses."
Retailleau, a relative hard-liner on immigration and drug crime, pledged to restore order in France's streets and its borders, using referenda to overhaul immigration and criminal justice laws.
"I will be the president of order, justice, and French pride," he said.
Retailleau also said he wanted to re-industrialize France, and "redirect the protection of our environment toward an ecology of progress."
A conservative senator from the Vendee region in western France, the 65-year-old served as interior minister from 2024 to 2025, first under former Prime Minister Michel Barnier, and then in the administration of François Bayrou.
He was reappointed when current Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu took office last October but resigned shortly afterwards, expressing anger over Lecornu's other cabinet picks.
That episode, which also prompted Lecornu to resign before being reappointed by Macron, damaged Retailleau's standing.
Polls suggest Retailleau faces an uphill battle to win the presidency. An Ifop poll published on Thursday found that 69% of respondents said he didn't have what it takes to be president.
Still, Retailleau leads a party with a solid parliamentary bloc that will likely be heavily courted by presidential rivals - most notably the far-right National Rally led by Marine Le Pen - should Retailleau fail to make the second round.
Retailleau spent much of his time as interior minister seeking to ramp up deportations and crack down on drug crime.
However, he may struggle to distinguish himself against the far-right RN, led by Le Pen and her protege Jordan Bardella, who have staked out a strong position in the polls thanks to their focus on these issues.
Since his departure from government, Retailleau has been very critical of the executive, criticising the concessions granted by Lecornu to the Socialists to pass a 2026 budget and avoid being toppled.
(Editing by Gabriel Stargardter and Toby Chopra)
