Florian Philippot

Florian Philippot (born 24 October 1981 in Croix, Nord, France) is a French politician. He served as Vice President in charge of strategy and communication of the National Front from 2012 until his resignation in September 2017, when he founded the party The Patriots, which has not won seats in subsequent elections.

Biography

Florian Philippot grew up in Bondues, a residential suburb of Lille Métropole. His father was a headmaster of a state primary school and his mother a primary school teacher. He holds degrees from HEC Paris and the École nationale d’administration. His brother Damien Philippot graduated from Sciences Po and ESCP Europe and is currently director of political studies at the French polling organization IFOP.

Political career

In October 2011 Philippot was named strategic director of Marine Le Pen’s presidential campaign for 2012. In July 2012 he became Vice President of the National Front, responsible for strategy and communication.

In the 2012 legislative elections he stood in Moselle’s 6th constituency. Despite a dissident National Front candidate winning 4.09% in the first round, Philippot came second with 26.34% and defeated the incumbent UMP deputy Pierre Lang (25.02%). He then lost the second round to the mayor of Forbach, Laurent Kalinowski, by 53.70% to 46.30%.

On 9 November 2012 he paid a personal homage to Charles de Gaulle at Colombey-les-Deux-Églises, placing flowers on de Gaulle’s grave and declaring his own Gaullist convictions. This gesture irritated some party members given Jean-Marie Le Pen’s hostility to the former president, and was criticized by the UMP as incompatible with true Gaullism.

After disagreements over the euro and his refusal to disband his new think tank Les Patriotes, Philippot resigned from the National Front on 21 September 2017. In the 2019 European Parliament elections in France his party won 0.6% of the vote and Philippot lost his seat to National Rally MEP Jordan Bardella.

He attempted to run in the 2022 presidential election but failed to secure more than one municipal endorsement out of the 500 required to appear on the ballot.

Personal life

In December 2014 the French magazine Closer published photographs indicating that Philippot is gay, which he denounced as an invasion of privacy and vowed to challenge legally. He stated that his party was neither pro- nor anti-gay and that being gay was not a barrier within it.