Paris – AFP
French presidential candidate Emmanuel Macron will hold a large rally on Saturday in France’s second largest city, Marseille, in an attempt to persuade voters who voted for the left to join him in the second round of the presidential election, once morest his far-right rival Marine Le Pen.
Marseille was not chosen at random. The large Mediterranean city voted 31 percent for radical left-wing leader Jean-Luc Melenchon during the first round of elections on April 10.
And extracting the votes of Melanchon voters, who came in third place with regarding 22 percent of the vote, is crucial for the candidates for the second round of the elections to be held on April 24, who have been trying for days to make pledges to these voters.
Thousands of people are expected to attend Macron’s meeting, which will be held in front of the Palais Faro overlooking the old port of Marseille.
Since the results of the first round of presidential elections were announced, the outgoing president – who has consistently presented himself as “neither from the right nor from the left” but has been accused of being a “president of the rich” – has doubled down on his initiatives towards the left and “social” currents.
He has suggested he might compromise on his controversial pension reform project, criticize the “astronomical” salaries of business leaders, and talk regarding the possibility of loosening standards for handicapped aid.
It remains to be seen whether these signals will convince voters who are unpredictable or inclined to refrain from reproducing the 2017 Macron-Le Pen competition.
Macron, who attracted those who want renewal, benefited above all from a massive vote once morest the far-right, winning the last elections with 66 percent of the vote.
But this year, the competition seems very intense, even though opinion polls suggest that the outgoing president will win between 53 and 56 percent of the vote.
It seems that the campaign for the second round of the elections will be more difficult for Le Pen, who had to delve into the details of her project, especially with regard to sovereign issues.
Before the first round, she undertook a quiet campaign during which she focused on the issue of purchasing power, the main concern of the French. It also refocused its image, taking advantage of the excesses and extremist rhetoric of the other far-right candidate, Eric Zemmour, who received 7 percent of the vote in the first round and was thus excluded from the second round.
During a surprise visit to a market in Bertwee (south) on Friday, the far-right candidate was harassed by her opponents, who chanted “Marin, leave!” and “racist!”
When asked by residents regarding immigration, the war in Ukraine, or even regarding the headscarf she intends to ban in public places, Le Pen defended her “radical” project, saying it was “very reasonable.”
And Le Pen, who is now calling for “impeding obstacles” in front of Macron’s second five-year term, repeats her populist statements criticizing the “regime” and the “rich” in power. But at the same time it is trying to reassure voters regarding its programme.
Le Pen, who was verbally attacked in Perth by a veiled Muslim woman objecting to her plan to ban the headscarf in public places, stressed that she is fighting for “all French people, whatever their origins.”
Over the weekend, and just before the second round, scheduled for eight days, the two opponents will also prepare for an inter-sessional debate scheduled for Wednesday.
This confrontation is very symbolic in the history of the French presidential elections since 1974.
