Stéphane Séjourné addresses potential conflict of interest regarding partner Gabriel Attal

PARIS — EU industry chief Stéphane Séjourné said in an interview with French outlet l’Opinion that Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will decide if he must leave his post should his romantic partner, Gabriel Attal, win next year’s presidential election in France.

The relationship between Attal, the leader of President Emmanuel Macron’s party Renaissance, and Séjourné poses a potential conflict of interest given the latter’s job as a European commissioner. Séjourné swore an oath upon taking office to prioritize EU interests over national matters, and his term runs beyond the French presidential election in April 2027.

Séjourné said he did not believe there would be a conflict of interest if Attal won the election but added that it was a “legitimate” question, in the interview published Wendesday.

The pair were in a civil partnership from 2017 to 2022, while Attal held several ministerial positions and Séjourné was an adviser to Macron before becoming an MEP. They broke up for two years, before rekindling their relationship in 2024.

Attal, who briefly served as prime minister in 2024, said last month that he and Séjourné would move into the Elysée Palace together if he wins the spring 2027 race to succeed Macron.

But Attal has been lagging in the polls behind far-right front-runner Marine Le Pen and Edouard Philippe, another former PM under Macron, since he declared his candidacy in May.

Séjourné also offered an indication as to how he would respond if Le Pen, a noted Euroskeptic who once wanted to bring France out of the EU, won the election.

He said he would “have to continue” in his position and defend EU interests.

“If I have to be more present in the media, or become more conflictual with France, to defend what I believe, then that’s what I will do,” he said.