Marine Le Pen will win the next election in France, Emmanuel Macron’s interior minister has warned in a direct challenge to the president, reports The Telegraph.
Gérald Darmanin cautioned that France must get tough on crime or risk opening the door to the hard-Right, in comments seen as part of an early bid to replace Mr Macron in the Élysée.
“The fact is that in five years, a victory for Madame Le Pen is quite likely. Faced with this, we will only need one candidate,” he told La Voix du Nord.
His comments to a regional newspaper came ahead of a rally on Sunday, where Mr Darmanin is gathering ministers, parliamentarians and his supporters for “an afternoon of reflection”.
It comes amid warnings from inside Mr Macron’s party that his minister’s open ambitions for the Élysée are questioning cabinet loyalty.