The Ideal Candidate for the French Presidency: Who Is Raphael Glucksmann, and What Is Standing in the Way of His Victory?

Another serious contender for the presidency has emerged in France, one with a rather unusual stance even for the local left.

On October 11, Member of the European Parliament Raphael Glucksmann won the Social Democrats’ primary, garnering over 66% of the vote, and officially became their candidate for the 2027 presidential election.

So, while a portion of the French left, led by Jean-Luc Mélenchon, continues to actively court Moscow, Glucksmann openly advocates for Russia’s defeat, supports military aid to Ukraine, and calls on Europe to act prudently and finally break free from its dependence on the U.S. Moreover, his support for Ukraine began long before the full-scale Russian invasion.

Channel 24 examined Raphael Glucksmann’s biography to understand how his views were formed, what political path he has taken, and whether Glucksmann can defeat the far-left and far-right Russia supporters in the race for the Élysée Palace.

From the Orange Revolution to the European Parliament: The Political Journey of Raphael Glucksmann

Raphaël Glucksmann was born on October 15, 1979, in a suburb of Paris, into the family of the renowned French philosopher André Glucksmann. Glucksmann Sr., alongside such intellectual titans as Bernard-Henri Lévy, and Alain Finkielkraut, was a prominent representative of the new school of French philosophy – the Nouveaux philosophes.

Raphael’s father was, in his time, one of the most famous French critics of communism, Soviet totalitarianism, and authoritarian regimes. He later actively passed these convictions on to his son.

Raphael Glucksmann during a public speech / Photo – Facebook

However, the Glucksmann family has direct ties to communists and, interestingly enough, to Ukraine. The future presidential candidate’s grandfather – Rubin Glucksmann – was born in 1889 in Chernivtsi, which was then part of Austria-Hungary. He later became a staunch communist and even worked as a Soviet intelligence agent during Stalin’s era.

In 1940, he was arrested by the British on suspicion of espionage, but the case never went to trial – Rubin died after a German submarine sank the ship that was transporting him to Canada. It is particularly interesting that Raphael himself only learned the details of this story thanks to a journalistic investigation, which later formed the basis of a documentary film about his family.

However, despite his grandfather’s ambiguous past, political dissidents, human rights activists, and intellectuals from all over the world regularly gathered at the Glucksman family home.

Among the guests wereVáclav Havel, the future president of the Czech Republic, French philosopher Bernard-Henri Lévy, and Anna Politkovskaya, a Russian journalist of Ukrainian descent, who was murdered in Moscow in 2006 after years of investigating Russian war crimes in Chechnya and criticizing Ramzan Kadyrov.

Moreover, the Glucksmann family not only hosted famous guests but also provided shelter to people fleeing political persecution. Thus, from childhood, the future politician was acquainted with people who knew firsthand what dictatorship and repression were like.Thus, the future French politician was acquainted from childhood with people who understood from personal experience what dictatorship and political repression entail.

After graduating from the Paris Institute of Political Studies, Glucksmann initially pursued a career in journalism. In 2004, he co-produced a documentary about the “ The Genocide of the Tutsi in Rwanda ” and France’s role in those events. And at the end of that same year, he traveled to Ukraine, where the Orange Revolution was just getting underway . This visit ultimately resulted in another documentary film dedicated to the Ukrainians’ struggle against the rigging of the presidential election.

Glucksmann in Saakashvili’s office in Tbilisi on the night of September 7–8, 2008, when a ceasefire agreement with Russia was signed / Photo – MYOP

Interestingly, Glucksmann gained his first significant political experience not in France, but in Georgia. Afterthe Russian invasion of 2008, he joined President Mikheil Saakashvili’s team and became his advisor on European integration. In particular, he helped the Georgian government establish relations with Western partners and promote Tbilisi’s interests in Europe.

It was in Georgia that Raphael Glucksmann met his future wife, Eka Zguladze, who at the time was deputy minister of the interior. In 2011, the couple had a son (however, they were unable to stay together and eventually divorced).

Ukrainians may be familiar with Ms. Zguladze due to the reform of the National Police of Ukraine, on which she worked following the Revolution of Dignity.

Rafael Glucksmann and Eka Zguladze / photo from the politician’s family archive

Ultimately, it was his experience working in Georgia that firmly cemented in Rafael Glucksmann the realization of the direct threat posed by Russian imperialism. And when the Euromaidan began in Ukraine in late 2013, Glucksmann once again traveled to Kyiv. This time, he didn’t just observe the revolution as a documentary filmmaker; he actively joined the protests, which would later shape his political stance.

A Social Democrat Against the Kremlin: Why Rafael Glucksmann Supports Ukraine

What is particularly important is that, unlike many European politicians who only became aware of the threat from Russia with the start of the full-scale invasion, Raphael Glucksmann had been warning of the danger long before that.

Moreover, for him, supporting Ukraine is not merely a matter of solidarity with the victim of aggression, but is directly linked to France’s own national interests. After all , the politician believes that Ukrainians are currently effectively holding back the Russian army from advancing further into Europe.

Glucksmann articulated his position particularly clearly in February 2026, ahead of the fourth anniversary of the full-scale invasion. At that time, he emphasized that Europeans support Ukraine not only because of Russia’s violations of international law, but primarily because Ukraine has become Europe’s first line of defense. And if the Ukrainian resistance is defeated, EU and NATO member states could become the next victims of Russian aggression.

Hence Glucksmann’s rather specific demands on European governments. He consistently advocates for increasing arms supplies to Ukraine, tightening sanctions against Moscow, and using frozen Russian assets to benefit Ukraine’s defense.

In addition, the politician actively criticizes the European Union’s dependence on the United States. A particular trigger was Donald Trump’s return to the White House, with all the ensuing conflicts between Brussels and Washington. Glucksmann insists that Europe must create its own defense system, independent of political sentiments in the U.S.

Raphael Glucksmann speaking in the European Parliament / Photo – Facebook

However, of course, Raphael Glucksmann’s political activities are not limited solely to issues concerning Ukraine. In 2018, he became one of the co-founders of the center-left movement Place publique, and the following year he headed a joint list with the French Socialists in the European Parliament elections. After being elected to the European Parliament, he became chair of the special committee on countering foreign interference in the EU’s democratic processes.

But the 2024 European Parliament elections marked a true political breakthrough for Glucksmann. At that time , the joint list of Place Publique and the Socialist Party received 13.8% of the vote, placing third and nearly catching up to Emmanuel Macron’s presidential camp, which garnered 14.6%. By comparison, in the previous 2019 elections, his list had received only 6.2% of the vote.

At the same time, the Ukrainian issue has also become a fundamental red line for Glucksmann within France’s left-wing camp. After the 2024 elections, he publicly stated that any coalition of left-wing forces must include unconditional support for the Ukrainian resistance and European integration. This became one of the main points of contention with the “ the views of the far-left Jean-Luc Mélenchon,” whose supporters advocate for limiting military aid to Kyiv.

Today, Glucksmann is trying to translate his success in the European Parliament into a victory at the Élysée Palace. However, the race for the presidency will require much more from him than consistent support for Ukraine and criticism of Vladimir Putin. After all, he will have to compete against politicians who have much more experience with presidential campaigns.

Between Mélenchon and Le Pen: Can Glucksmann Become President of France?

Despite a fairly successful career in the European Parliament, Raphael Glucksmann remains a relatively new figure in French politics. He has never headed a government, held a ministerial post, or even served as a member of the French Parliament. So now he will have to prove to voters that he is capable not only of criticizing Russia and defending European democracy, but also of solving France’s own problems.

Glucksmann himself understands this perfectly well, which is why his political platform is not limited to international issues. He positions himself as a social democrat who advocates for strengthening social protection, combating inequality, supporting French industry, and promoting environmental transformation.

Glucksmann at a campaign rally / Photo – Facebook

At the same time, Glucksmann is trying to distance himself from both Emmanuel Macron’s economic liberalism and Jean-Luc Mélenchon’s radical left-wing views.

And this is precisely where the main problems of his presidential campaign begin, as the French left – where, in theory, Glucksmann could find allies – remains deeply divided.

The politician categorically rejects the possibility of an alliance with Mélenchon’s party, “Unbowed France,” accusing it of radicalism and a contradictory stance on foreign policy. At the same time, Mélenchon himself has no intention of ceding his prominent position to a new contender for leadership among the left.

And this is already directly reflected in the polls. According to an October Ipsos poll, Glucksmann can expect to receive 13–15.5% of the vote in the first round, depending on the field of candidates. 

By comparison, Mélenchon is polling at around 17%, while far-right candidate Marine Le Pen is at as high as 32–33.5%. In other words, even after winning the party primaries, Glucksmann has not yet managed to overtake his main rival within the left-wing camp.

Several Scenarios for the First-Round Results of the French Presidential Election / Infographic – Ipsos

At the same time, he will have to compete for voters not only with Mélenchon, as part of Glucksmann’s electorate also consists of moderate centrists, among whom former Prime Minister Édouard Philippe remains one of the key contenders for leadership.

Thus, the politician faces a rather ambitious task – to simultaneously unite the moderate left, secure the support of voters disappointed in Emmanuel Macron, and to convince the rest that he is the one capable of standing up to the far right led by Le Pen.

The problem is that even Glucksmann’s victory in the primary does not reveal his true potential. Despite a convincing 66% of the vote, only about 121,000 people participated in the election. By comparison, in the 2011 French Socialist Party primary, more than 2.8 million voters cast ballots in the second round.

This gap clearly demonstrates that, for now, Glucksmann’s most difficult task will not be so much a public battle against Mélenchon or Le Pen, but simply mobilizing a broader base of Social Democratic voters.

For Ukraine, Glucksmann’s presidential campaign is interesting primarily because he offers the French a foreign policy course based on supporting Kyiv, countering Russian aggression, and strengthening Europe’s defense autonomy. He would be the ideal candidate – if it were possible to vote from Ukraine. However , the local electorate is unlikely to go to the polls thinking only about which name on the ballot would be the best choice for Ukrainians.

The French will vote first and foremost for those who promise to solvethe country's internal problems, which have only been getting worse recently. And here, Glucksmann may simply lack the experience and popularity within his own country. After all, the path to the Élysée Palace lies not only through awareness of the Russian threat, but above all through an understanding of exactly what is troubling the French at home today – and why.