“A man of experience”: former Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin welcomes the candidacy of Teddy Riner

Dominique de Villepin welcomed this Monday the surprise candidacy for the presidential election of judo champion Teddy Riner, “a man of experience”, and encouraged figures from civil society to get involved in the campaign.

“A man of experience”

“It turns out that I know him well, Teddy Riner, and that I like him a lot,” reacted the former Prime Minister of Chirac, who himself harbors Elysian ambitions.

The judoka is “a man of experience” whose “voice counts, since his career arouses the admiration of all,” he said during a press conference intended for international media. “So I am delighted to see that he is concerned” by the presidential election, added Dominique de Villepin.

He judges that civil society figures have turned away from electoral campaigns. “We have seen too often in recent decades entire sections of our national life and I am thinking of the cultural sector, I am thinking of the arts sector, losing interest or staying away from deadlines,” he said.

“Villepin my president”

Dominique de Villepin called on “the largest possible number of voices and skills” to participate in the debate, because “if there is one election that concerns us all, it is definitely that of 2027”. “The next question is how all these forces put themselves in battle order” so as not to lead “a fight each on their own,” he said.

Dominique de Villepin hopes to establish himself as an alternative to the National Rally, La France Insoumise, and a central bloc that he considers accountable for Emmanuel Macron's record. If he has not yet declared himself, the Gaullist insists on his desire to launch into the race for the Élysée.

The walls of the premises of his movement, La France humaniste, already set the tone on Monday: a poster “Villepin my president”, concocted by members of his team, was affixed there.