Jean Castex assures this Wednesday, July 1, that he is not a candidate in the presidential elections, declaring that he is satisfied with his role as head of the SNCF. He states that a potential candidacy is “not on his horizon.”
Perhaps one less? This Wednesday, July 1, Jean Castex, former Prime Minister and current head of the SNCF, returned to the presidential elections scheduled for Sunday, April 18 and May 2, 2027, and the numerous candidates announced. He won’t be one of them, he assures us.
“I wonder if it’s not different today not to be a candidate,” the SNCF CEO laughed on France Inter, before clarifying: “It’s not on the agenda or on my horizon.”
The one who announced himself to the general public as Prime Minister from 2020 to 2022, at the height of the covid crisis, assures that he is now professionally realized. “I am the President and CEO of SNCF, I am very happy to be, very busy, I have a lot to do and this is more than enough for my happiness,” he insists.
“No one can ever close the door to anything.”
Jean Castex reiterates that today he sees himself solely as the head of SNCF, “carrying out (his) task”, but refuses any too categorical statements. “No one can ever close the door to anything,” he assures.
At the time of his resignation from Matignon in 2022, Jean Castex said he wanted to step away from national politics.
He then became President of the French Transport Infrastructure Finance Agency, then Director General of RATP and finally SNCF.
Long list of presidential candidates
In the political space of which he was part, the number of candidates has increased, especially the candidacies of two other former prime ministers, Gabriel Attal and Edouard Philippe, who are creating a rift in the presidential camp. This Wednesday, the Minister Delegate in charge of the ecological transition, Mathieu Lefebvre, for example, supported Edouard Philippe rather than the leader of his party.
In total, more than ten individuals officially declared themselves candidates for the presidential elections.
Added to this list are the candidacies of individuals who want to participate in the primaries (for example, François Ruffin or Marine Tondelier), as well as the candidacies of political figures who say they are preparing to become candidates (for example, François Hollande or Dominique de Villepin).