While nationalist leader Marine Le Pen was preoccupied with bringing down France's government on Wednesday, several thousand people lined up outside a Paris cafe for a chance to chat or take a photo with the rising star of the French far-right.
Jordan Bardella, Le Pen's 29-year-old right-hand man, is a member of the European Parliament, so he was not in the National Assembly to vote with other members of his National Gathering (RN) party for the dismissal of Prime Minister Michel Barnier.
He was less than five kilometers away, surrounded by fans, signing copies of his hit debut book "What I'm Looking For".
"It's a book they don't want you to read," Bardella said during a glamorous promotional tour that coincided with France's second major political crisis in six months. That crisis raised his political rating at a time when the position of his longtime mentor Marine Le Pen is threatened, writes Reuters.
She was a driving force in bringing down the Barnier government over the 2025 budget, which she saw as too harsh on the working class. Reuters assesses that this is a risky strategy that could alienate traditional conservative voters, whom he has been trying to attract for a long time.
Opponents claim that Le Pen's target is actually President Emmanuel Macron, and that she is trying to call an early election before her embezzlement trial on March 31, which could bar her from politics for five years. A guilty verdict would make it impossible for her to run in the 2027 presidential election, which many believe she could win.
"The target is Emanuel Macron," Barni's potential successor, Xavier Bertran, told BFM TV. "She would like everything to be speeded up before the verdict in March".
Le Pen denies accusations of embezzlement of EU funds.
Bardella, the likely presidential candidate of the RN in 2027 if Le Pen is disqualified, also claims that she is not to blame. However, after his statement in an interview on November 18 that no one with a criminal conviction should run as a representative of the RN, the question is whether it was just a gaffe or a hint of conflict with his mentor.
Reuters reports that Bardella's comments highlighted the passing of the RN tandem after years of working together.
The main concerns of Bardella's supporters are crime and immigration, issues that are a key part of his political agenda
Arno Benedetti, a political analyst who recently wrote a book on the rise of the RN, said Le Pen and Bardella have more to gain by sticking together for now, drawing on complementary strengths such as youth and experience.
"I don't see the beginning of disagreement," he told Reuters. "I'm not saying it can't happen tomorrow, but right now they have no reason to separate."
Marie Debir, an 18-year-old beautician who came from Rennes in Brittany for the book signing, said the Le Pen name carried unnecessary weight because of Marie's father, Jean-Marie, the founder of a party once synonymous with racism and anti-Semitism.
Although he believes Le Pen is guilty of the embezzlement allegations, Debir believes she should run in 2027.
"But I think Bardela has a better chance of winning," she added. "The RN has a chance to come to power thanks to the fact that Bardela does not bear the last name Le Pen".
According to a poll conducted by the Odoxa agency on November 26, 59 percent of RN voters support Bardella, while 37 percent are for Le Pen.
Reviews of Bardella's book have not been favorable - "a marketing object ... devoid of any introspection or revelation", judged "Mond", but it has sold almost 60.000 copies since its launch on 9 November.
None of the young people who waited in line in the cold Wednesday night to meet their hero cared about the criticism from the Paris papers. They are more concerned about the rise of gang violence and immigration, issues that are a key part of Bardella's political agenda, writes Reuters.
"We need a change, and I think Bardella is the man who can do it," said 18-year-old Eric Bertello, from a Paris suburb with a large number of immigrants.
"France accepts all the misery of the world," he said. “But those who come do not respect our culture and want to destroy our country. This is unacceptable and must be punished".
Bardella often points out that he grew up in the poor, multi-ethnic department of Saint-Saint-Denis north of Paris, which shaped his political views.
Ismail Habri, a 27-year-old janitor with a TRAMP badge on his lapel, said he grew up in a similar environment.
"I know that ghetto well, so I understand Bardela," he said. "France needs hope".
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