The Ministry of Culture will change hands. Roselyne Bachelot should not be reappointed. But who could replace her?
An unmissable neon green suit in the courtyard of the Elysée and under the golds of the presidential palace’s village hall on the occasion of the investiture of Emmanuel Macron. One of the last images of Roselyne Bachelot will be remembered, she who is preparing to leave her post as Minister of Culture after a little less than two years at the head of the administration. At 75, it is unlikely to see the former Minister of Ecology, but also of Health, return to the Royal Palace, the seat of the ministry. Oft-maligned portfolio, of which only Jack Lang is said to have been the last great Minister of Culture, he seems to suffer from a lack of embodiment of placing his files on the bottom of the pile at the highest peak of State, never appearing as a priority. Above all, the organization was pinned down by the Court of Auditors in December 2021, the supervisory body ordering it to reorganize and redefine its objectives. Will Emmanuel Macron and Elisabeth Borne have these considerations in mind when choosing Roselyne Bachelot’s successor and establishing its scope of action?
Which minister will succeed Roselyne Bachelot at the Ministry of Culture?
Since the creation of the Ministry of Culture in 1959, 25 Ministers of Culture have succeeded each other in the various governments. If in the protocol order, the function only happens in the second part, some jostle to settle at the head of the administration. If, for the time being, no name really emerges, a rumor is insistent and several hypotheses are formulated. The most prominent CV currently would be that of Rachel Khan. The actress, writer but also a lawyer could be named. The possibility had been formulated as soon as Emmanuel Macron won and his profile will be listed on lists of possible governments. Author of Racée, “an act of liberation of speech against domination in the anti-racist struggle of decolonial thought” as she described it to Charlie Hebdo, the one who describes herself as a universalist is cajoled by LREM. The former cultural adviser to Jean-Paul Huchon, former PS president of Île-de-France, led a working group “on immigration, integration and secularism” during Emmanuel Macron’s campaign .
In addition, various assumptions are made: Aurore Berge, LREM MP for Yvelines, is very committed to the issue of culture, member of the Committee on Cultural Affairs and Education at the National Assembly in which she has carried out several parliamentary missions in connection with this area, on the audiovisual, cultural policy or even on the impact of the Covid crisis on the sector. President of this same committee, Bruno Studercommitted to digital protection, could also be cited, just like Rima Abdul-Malak, cultural and communication adviser to Emmanuel Macron at the Elysée Palace, worked as head of the cabinet of Christophe Girard, in charge of Culture at the Paris City Hall from 2010 to 2012. Described as overshadowing Roselyne Bachelot, could she take his place? What if the position was finally filled by a surprise personality? The name of Claire Chazal, former star presenter of the JT of TF1, would have already been approached in 2017 by Emmanuel Macron. At the time, she denied having been approached, conceding however that “if the proposal had been made to me, obviously, I would have thought about it.” Will the President of the Republic probe it?