Russia-linked disinformation networks have intensified campaigns against potential candidates in France’s 2027 presidential election, according to a review by Meduza.
The campaigns used fabricated materials designed to resemble reports from well-known French news outlets, as well as coordinated networks of social media accounts.
Meduza named former Prime Minister Édouard Philippe, Raphaël Glucksmann, and Gabriel Attal among the politicians targeted by disinformation.
French sources and disinformation researchers have linked some of the operations to networks known as Storm-1516 and Matryoshka, both of which have previously been associated with Russian influence operations.
However, direct involvement by Russian state agencies has not been established in every case. The evidence concerns networks and operations that researchers and French authorities have linked to Russia.