Bayrou, who was a classical language teacher in his 20s, served as Minister of Education from 1993 to 1997. But that was his last significant experience in government.
He was Macron’s justice minister for a very short time in 2017, but resigned after being indicted in a party funding scandal.
He was eventually acquitted, but many of his colleagues were convicted. And prosecutors have appealed his acquittal, meaning he could still be brought back to court.
An observant Catholic with six children. Bayrou’s political base is in the Pyrenean city of Pau, where he has been mayor since 2014. He speaks the local Bearnian language and strongly believes in decentralization.
Bairu ran for president three times as the standard-bearer of the center. The closest he came to winning was in 2007, when he finished third with nearly 19% of the vote. He then angered eventual winner Nicolas Sarkozy by coming out in support of Socialist candidate Segalen Royal.
If the only possible way for a minority government to survive is to build bridges to the left and the right, Bayrou has the advantage of having satisfactory relations with both sides.
His support for Royal and then Francois Hollande in 2012 created some confidence among the Socialists. But his views on debt – and the need to reduce it – are helping him in his cause.
Interestingly, his relationship with Marine Le Pen’s right-wing populist party is also respectful. In the past, he helped her gather the sponsorship she needed to run for president, arguing it would be an affront to democracy if the leader of the most popular party didn’t last.
A similar sentiment led to support for Le Pen when the prosecutor in her own party finance trial (similar to his own) recently demanded that she be declared unfit for public office.
This could mean that Bayrou can avoid automatic condemnation from right-wing populists.
But Le Pen’s National Rally has also warned that if the new prime minister is “Barnier with a different face”, it will not hesitate to oust him.
According to veteran French political commentator Alain Duhamel, Bayrou is an independent-minded and highly savvy figure who – although an ally of Macron – will not hesitate to use his power at the Hotel Matignon, his official residence.
“He’s not easy to punish,” Duhamel said. “And he will tilt politics more to the left.”
