MARSEILLE, France – On a stage set up on a green lawn overlooking the sunny Mediterranean port of Marseille, President Emmanuel Macron on Saturday declared to a crowd of supporters: “The politics I will implementation in the next 5 years will be the environment , or will not ! ”
That’s an ambitious promise for a president with a green policy was criticized repeat climate protest, sentenced by the court for “no action” and is marked as unreachable. But above all, Mr. Macron’s oath is a direct appeal to his left-wing voters, who hold the key to a final victory in the second round of the presidential election – and to for whom climate has become a key issue.
Mr. Macron devoted about three-quarters of his one-and-a-half hour speech to environmental issues. He promised to appoint ministers responsible for long-term environmental planning, plant 140 million trees by 2030 and rapidly cut dependence on oil and gas by developing nuclear and renewable energy. create.
“Inaction – not for me!” he told a cheering crowd of about 4,000 gathered in Parc du Pharo, on the summit of Marseille, of what could be the final rally of Mr. Macron ahead of the April 24 vote.
The event symbolizes Mr. Macron’s strategy for the race between the centre-right incumbent and his far-right rival, Marine Le Pen: engaging the left with progressive policies and campaigning in the cities working-class street where he is trying to erase his image as an aloof president. detached from everyday reality. If a large number of left-wing voters stayed home in the second round of voting, or migrated to Ms. Le Pen’s camp, that could cause serious trouble for Mr. Macron.
Stewart Chau, an analyst with polling firm Viavoice, said Mr Macron’s main goal was “to find the voters of Jean-Luc Mélenchon,” far-left candidate third person overall in the first round vote – but the first was in Marseille, with 31 percent of the vote.
In September, the president unveiled a multibillion-euro plan to tackle crime and poverty in Marseille.
Promising “complete renewal” if re-elected, Mr. Macron also used his speech to attack Le Pen, accusing her of wanting to curtail press freedom, challenge gender equality and bring France to justice. out of the European Union. He’s trying to revive.”levee“Which mainstream voters have long formed by voting for whoever supports Le Pen – his or her current opponent, Jean-Marie, the leader of France since the 1970s.
Saturday’s protests capped a week of intense campaigning for Mr. Macron, touring the country since monday to make up for a lackluster initial campaign. Only visiting places where Ms. Le Pen or Mr. Mélenchon had come out on top in the first round, he was venturing out with angry villagers, trying to show that he too could feel it. their pain.
In contrast, Ms. Le Pen, who has long tried to soften her public image, has become more risk-averse, limiting her campaign trips this week. Instead, she tried to bolster her credibility with two press conferences about her proposed institutional overhaul and foreign policy agenda.
But those events partly backfired after her party’s refusal to acknowledge certain media outlets caused a stir, and when she controversial blueprint to seek cooperation with Russia and give up NATO’s combined military command.
Ms. Le Pen has come under more scrutiny since another far-right candidate, Eric Zemmour, does not perform the flow. His Comments provoked against immigration and Islam has drawn much attention away from Ms. Le Pen, who has long been known for similar stances.
“Form confronts content,” said Chau, an analyst, adding that Le Pen’s cleaned-up image now conflicts with “the realism of her ideas, which is unsatisfactory.” anything but attraction, anything but soothing.”
At a rally on Thursday in the southern city of Avignon, Ms. Le Pen mentioned immigration only three times, even though it is the foundation of her platform. She proposed deporting foreigners after they lost their jobs because of a year, giving priority to French natives in terms of social housing and rights, and abolishing the right to citizenship at birth in France.
Her supporters have been tarnished. “She still wants to kick out the immigrants,” said Aline Vincent, a French flag in her right hand, who attended Ms Le Pen’s rally with about 4,000 others. “But she didn’t say so.”
In Marseille, Daniel Beddou, said he was “very worried” about the rise of the right wing. Holding a European flag in his left hand, he says he satisfied with Mr. Macron’s environmental plans. He said they embody the president’s “simultaneous” approach, alluding to his habit of borrowing policies from both the left and the right.
In calling 7.7 million voters to back Mr Mélenchon in the first round and seemingly holding the key to eventual victory, Mr Macron downplayed some of his proposals, such as a plan to raise the age legally retire at age 65. from 62, which he now says can be softened.
On Saturday, he also emphasized long-term “environmental planning” – a concept that is a cornerstone of Mr. Mélenchon’s platform – promising to appoint a minister “directly responsible” for it, with support of two ministers in charge of energy and environment. transition.
“There is a real willingness to talk to a working-class constituency, a region,” said Sacha Houlié, a lawmaker and campaign spokesman. left wing that we were missing in the first round.
Things to know about the French presidential election
Towards a flow. French citizens voted on April 10 in the first round of electionsnominate President Emmanuel Macron and far-right leader Marine Le Pen to April 24 flow. Here’s a look at the race:
To what extent Mr. Macron’s last-minute left-leaning will yield results remains to be seen.
Many voters are still disillusioned by Mr. Macron has leaned towards the right in recent years. François Dosse, a French historian and philosopher who was one of Mr. Macron’s most ardent supporters during the last election, said: tough stance on immigration and against Islamic extremism tantamount to “recycling the fear of the far right” and indirectly lends credence to Ms. Le Pen’s speech.
“It’s playing Russian roulette,” said Mr. Dosse of Mr. Macron’s strategy to change the French electoral landscape. “And it’s a dangerous game in which one can lose – and lose democracy.”
Mr Macron won just 28 per cent of the vote last week, 23 per cent for Ms Le Pen and 22 per cent for Mr Mélenchon, with a host of others following suit. For now, some voters are considering sitting out Round 2, frustrated by the incumbent’s performance.
“In 2017, he was a fresh face, he was young, he was ambitious – but in the end, he didn’t do anything,” said Nadia Mebrek, 48-year-old Mélenchon supporter. , adding that she would probably be sceptical. She was standing at the Rue d’Aubagne, where two buildings collapsed in 2018, killing eight people – a testament to Marseille’s endemic poverty and housing crisis.
“Macron, he protects the rich more than the poor,” says Mebrek, who as a personal care assistant has always been paid the minimum wage.
Poll showed that only a third of Mr Mélenchon’s supporters would support Mr Macron in his run to keep Ms Le Pen in power, with the remainder split between a vote for Ms Le Pen and an abstention.
But the first week of the withdrawal campaign looks to work in Mr. Macron’s favor. Voter survey showed that his lead in the second half was extended. The French president will receive 56% of the vote, compared with Ms Le Pen’s 44 – his biggest lead since late March.
In Marseille, many of Mélenchon’s supporters like Nate Gasser, 26, said they would respect and back Macron to defeat Le Pen. “I make it annoying, but we will vote for Macron,” he said, stressing that it was not “a vote on compliance.”
“And then,” he said, “we will take to the streets to protest.”
