A new alliance of leftist forces led by radical politician Mélenchon could be a contender for President Macron’s party in France’s parliamentary elections. Why did the chance of the left increase?
If ultra-right Marine leader Le Pen is Emmanuel Macron’s main opponent in the presidential election held in April in France, then in the parliamentary elections on June 12 and 19, his opponent will be the representative of the left camp.
The New People’s Ecological and Social Union, or NUPES (Nouvelle Union Populaire écologique et sociale), is the name of a newly formed leftist political alliance led by 70-year-old Jean-Luc Mélenchon.
“We need working class representatives in parliament”
NUPES enjoys support specifically in the Parisian suburb of Chevilly-Laroux. Here, in the plaza, in many similar tall buildings, leftists are conducting their election campaign. There are several tents next to the impromptu stage. In one they play chess, in the other they eat and talk. Loud music from the speakers.
The 19-year-old rapper, who calls himself Lazak, repeated the words “We are the city” from the stage as some spectators sang. Among them is Rachel Keke, a native of Côte d’Ivoire, a candidate for deputy from NUPES.
The 48-year-old Keke works as a maid in a hotel in Paris and wants to represent the interests of those citizens who belong to the less affluent sections of French society in Parliament.
Thanks to their support, the left hopes to get a majority in parliament. Such a result has not yet been predicted, but, political analysts warn, a surprise is quite possible.
“We need working class representatives in the National Assembly to represent our interests,” Keke told DW.
He was sitting on a bench near the stage. This is his place. Here, a few hundred meters away, there is a tall building where he lives with his four children.
Keke is running for parliament for the first time. But he aroused public interest even earlier. In June 2021, the maid, along with colleagues from Ibis hotels and other Accor group chains, finally arrived after a 22 -month strike. The hotel owners almost fully complied with the demands of the protesters.
“Our salaries, which used to be between 600 and 1,000 euros, have risen and are now between 1,300 and 1,900 euros. This shows that there is enough money and we, the poor people of France, can earn more, ”Keke said. seems to be written for people like us. “
What did the “left” promise their voters?
The Union of the Left, led by Mélenchon, among other things, is in favor of raising the minimum wage to 1,500 euros (now 1,300), for lowering the retirement age to 60 years (now – 62 years) and limiting increases in fuel and staple food prices.
NUPES, like the communists, the “vegetables” and the socialists, who did not get even five percent in the last parliamentary election, advocate for the rights of women, migrants and for solving environmental problems. .
In addition, NUPES wants to nationalize banks and energy companies and guarantee jobs for every French citizen. The left is critical of the EU and NATO and wants France to leave the alliance.
With the help of such arguments, Keke is trying to convince residents and area residents to vote for the left in parliamentary elections. One of them, nurse Rufin Olle Nne, was handed Keke a pamphlet with an electoral program.
“It’s getting harder to live on our small salary. But do you really believe NUPES can make a difference?” asked the nurse, who had two children and a third about to be received.
“I think we can. But for this we need your support,” Keke replied. At that moment, two young men passed by: “We are on your side. We will vote for you.” Keke smiled and nodded back at them.
Jean-Luc Mélenchon relied on the same support, uniting the largest left-wing party party around him to participate in the elections. He uses the relatively successful result in the presidential elections as an additional argument.
Mélenchon, who ran for his “Unsubdued France” party, won 22% of the vote in the first round of elections, finishing in third place. Macron was confident that he beat Marine Le Pen in the second. But in parliamentary elections, Macron’s party’s main rivals are not the radicals on the right, but the left.
Le Pen’s party, according to polls, can count on just 40 of the 557 seats in parliament. NUPES can now win most of the seats in the first round. Members of the French Parliament are elected for five years in single -member constituencies.
The candidate who receives the absolute majority of the votes in the first round (and at least 25% of the votes of registered voters) will be the winner. If this does not happen, the second round will be held with candidates who have received at least 12.5%. The relative majority of votes was enough to win it.
Mélenchon aspires to be prime minister
“Choose me as prime minister,” Mélenchon urged his voters. Although he himself is not running as a candidate in these elections. Mélenchon’s calculation is this: if the left -wing alliance wins, then Macron will have to appoint him as prime minister, otherwise parliament will pass a vote of no confidence in the government.
Macron said, in an interview with French media, that “no party can force the president.”
So does Mélenchon have a chance? French political scientist Bruno Quatre believes NUPES will combine all the votes of the left in the first round, but the left will have less chance in the second.
“In the second round, they have no reserve, unlike Macron’s candidates, which will be supported by right and center voters,” the political scientist explained in an interview with DW.
Even the central voters who were left behind, according to Catre, could support Macron’s party: “Mélenchon is too radical left and intimidates everyone with his position in relation to international associations and ideological closeness to Vladimir Putin. ” Prior to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Mélenchon called NATO, not Putin, the aggressive side.
Experts do not rule out surprises following the results of the upcoming vote. Something similar could happen to what happened in the parliamentary elections in 1997. Then the socialists unexpectedly won them.
And conservative President Jacques Chirac had to lead with the Socialist Party government under Lionel Jospin.
Rachel Keke expects a similar surprise: “We just have to win. We are the only party that understands the situation of the poor in this country.”
Source: Russian Service DW
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Source: korrespondent
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.