Luis Vassy, in the lead for the direction of Sciences Po after a first internal vote
After several months of crisis at Sciences Po Paris, diplomat Luis Vassy finds himself in the front-runner position to take over the institution. Vassy, 44, was chosen on Thursday in the second round of a vote by the board of the Institute of Political Studies (IEP), obtaining 20 votes against 9 for academic Rostane Mehdi, director of Sciences Po Aix. Arancha Gonzalez, former Spanish minister and dean of the School of International Affairs at Sciences Po, was eliminated in the first round.
This Friday afternoon, the board of directors of the National Foundation for Political Science (FNSP), the school's supervisory body, will meet to interview the candidates and vote in turn. If Luis Vassy is chosen once again, his name will be submitted for approval to the President of the Republic, who alone is authorized to officially ratify the nomination.
A diplomatic profile to renovate the school of elites
Luis Vassy, former French ambassador to the Netherlands and current chief of staff of the resigning Minister of Foreign Affairs Stéphane Séjourné, stands out for his closeness to Emmanuel Macron, with whom he is a former classmate at the ENA. In his project, he advocates a "triple renovation" for Sciences Po, insisting on the need to modernize the image, governance and funding of the school, while placing Europe "at the heart" of its educational project.
This appointment comes after a long period of turbulence for Sciences Po, marked by the resignation in March of former director Mathias Vicherat, implicated in a domestic violence case. Since then, the institution has been temporarily led by Jean Bassères, former director general of Pôle Emploi.
A school shaken by controversy
Recent years have been punctuated by successive scandals. Vicherat's predecessor, Frédéric Mion, had to leave his post in 2021, after covering up accusations of incest against Olivier Duhamel, then president of the FNSP. Before him, Richard Descoings, the school's emblematic director, died unexpectedly in 2012.
The controversies were also fueled by student mobilizations, particularly pro-Palestinian, causing tensions within the institution. In March, the occupation of an amphitheater by students led to accusations of anti-Semitism and a visit by Prime Minister Gabriel Attal, himself a former student of Sciences Po.
With the possible appointment of Luis Vassy, the school seems to be moving towards a profile close to that of Mathias Vicherat, in a continuity which could finally stabilise the governance of this historic establishment.
