Political Thinking with Nick Robinson - Jordan Bardella: The 30-year-old populist hoping to be France's next president

Download Jordan Bardella: The 30-year-old populist hoping to be France's next president

An exclusive interview on immigration, racism, Russia, Farage and Trump.

Jordan Bardella is the leader of National Rally in France, and currently leading the polls to become president in 2027 if his mentor, Marine Le Pen fails to overturn a conviction that bars her from running for office.

In the meantime, he is on a mission to persuade people that his party has changed since its history as the National Front, founded in the 1970s by Jean-Marie Le Pen, a convicted racist and Holocaust-denier.

Can he succeed?

In this interview, Bardella responds to Donald Trump's criticism of Europe, rejects challenges on racism and explains why he is in London to meet with Nigel Farage

Producers: Daniel Kraemer and Leela Padmanabhan
Research: Lisa Louis
Translation: Pierre-Antoine Denis
Additional translation: Merlyn Thomas, Erwan Rivault
Sound editing: Craig Kingham
Editor: Giles Edwards

Published on Wednesday, 10th December 2025.

Available Podcasts from Political Thinking with Nick Robinson

Subscribe to Political Thinking with Nick Robinson

We are not the BBC, we only list available podcasts. To find out more about the programme including episodes available on BBC iPlayer, go to the Political Thinking with Nick Robinson webpage.