Bai Lu, who was a classical languages teacher in his 20s, served as Minister of Education from 1993 to 1997. But that was his last meaningful experience in government.
He briefly served as Macron’s justice minister in 2017, but resigned after being indicted in a political party funding scandal.
He was eventually acquitted, but many of his associates were found guilty. And prosecutors have appealed his acquittal, meaning he could yet end up back in court.
An observant Catholic and father of six, Bayrou’s political base is in the Pyrenees city of Pau, where he has served as mayor since 2014. He speaks the local Bearnese language and is a strong believer in decentralization.
Bai Lu ran for president three times as the central standard-bearer. He came closest to winning in 2007, when he came in third place with nearly 19% of the vote. He then upset future winner Nicolas Sarkozy by endorsing socialist candidate Ségolène Royal.
If a minority government’s only means of survival is to build bridges between the left and the right, Bai Lu has the advantage of being able to build decent relationships with both.
His support for the royal family and François Hollande in 2012 built a certain credibility among socialists. But his views on debt and the need to reduce it help him to the right.
Interestingly, his relationship with right-wing populist Marine Le Pen is also admirable. In the past, he helped her raise donations for her presidential bid, arguing that it would be an affront to democracy if the leader of the most popular political party was unable to stand.
Similar sentiments have led to support for Le Pen, who recently called for prosecutors in her party’s financing trial (a case similar to her own) to declare her unfit for public office.
This could mean that Bai Lu can avoid automatic condemnation from the populist right.
But Le Pen’s national rally also warned that if the new prime minister were “a Vanier with a different face”, they would not hesitate to bring him down.
According to veteran French political commentator Alain Duhamel, Bairou is an independent-minded and experienced figure who, although allied with Macron, will not hesitate to exercise his power at his official residence, the Hotel Matignon. It is said that it will.
“He will not be easily disciplined,” Duhamel said. “And he will tilt his policies even further to the left.”
