Le Pen (pictured right) of the National Rally party is leading in many polls ahead of France's April 2027 presidential election. She wants to address what many observers consider the country's suicidal immigration policies.
Dr. Glen Duerr, chair of history and government and professor of international studies at Cedarville University in Ohio, says Le Pen's stance on immigration is one reason she has become a thorn in the side of France's left-wing political establishment.
In addition to believing those policies offer the country a better path forward, as he recently told AFN, Duerr thinks a Le Pen presidency would significantly improve France's relationship with U.S. President Donald Trump.
He says relations between the two countries have "soured" to some degree in recent years under French President Emmanuel Macron, who has faced deep political turmoil and is scheduled to leave office in May 2027 after reaching the constitutionally mandated limit of two consecutive terms.
"Macron and Trump (pictured above in early 2025) … did have some good points in Trump's first term," Duerr recalls. "There were significant overtures. Macron had hosted Trump in Paris, and the two seemed to get along really quite well. But some of that has soured."
Duerr predicts "the relations would warm very, very nicely between" Trump and Le Pen.
"There are points of difference policy wise between them," he acknowledges. "Those would have to be managed and watched carefully as well, especially around Russia and some other areas of foreign policy where they diverge in places."
France and the United States remain major allies with strong economic, military and security ties, but disagreements over trade tariffs, defense policy and human rights have strained relations during Trump's second term.
Still, Duerr says, "There would be an improvement under Le Pen, would she become the next president of France. This would be really the most conservative president in some time."
