It won't come as a scoop if I tell you that France is right now coming to the end of a long and passion-fuelled presidential campaign. For months now personnalities, the media, café counter conversations, sunday lunch debates and every other kind of social interaction has been centred on the choice of who is capable (or not) of being France's next President.
It isn't my aim here to go through all the blurb that has been wafting our way, it would take pages to write up and the internet is full of sites that will explain it more accurately. However, here is a brief history of what, in my view, have been the main milestones in this campaign.
It is worth bearing in mind that France is a pluralist democracy which, unlike Britain or the US say which are caracterised by their bipartisan approach, boasts a large number of political parties, though most are clearly less important (in the sense of size and influence) than a few.
French political culture is still deeply anchored in what is called "le clivage gauche/droite ". Left wingers ("la gauche") and right wingers ("la droite") have had a conflictual relationship since the 60s, and "l'alternance", i.e. replacing la droite with la gauche or vice-versa at practically every election, has been a huge feature of French political life for years. "La cohabitation", describing the situation where the head of State (the President of the Republic) and the head of government (the Prime minister) are of different political colours has also been a feature of the France's Vth Republic politics. (The Vth Republic dates from 1958 when Charles De Gaulle, hero of the Resistance in WW2, designed a Constitution that gave the President quasi-monarchic powers). The combination of l'alternance and la cohabitation, plus the status of the President has meant for the last 30 years or so that France's political scene has been shambolic, based on rejection of the last lot in power and impossible cooperations at the highest levels of State.
It is equally important to recap how the French electoral system works for the Presidentials. Any person wishing to present him/herself must gather signatures from 500 of France's 36000 mayors. Once these have been validated by the Conseil Constitutionnnel, France's equivalent to a Constitutional Court, the candidates proceed to the first round ("le premier tour").
Traditionnally it is an eclectic bunch that campaigns for that premier tour. Green, communist, extreme-right, center, rural right, urban right, left, international left, you name it, you can probable find it, but the great feature of the VthRepublic is that no matter who you vote for in the first round, the left wing candidate will face the right wing candidate in the "second tour", which is held two weeks after the first.
Until 2002 that is, which is milestone one in my analysis.
The French say that you vote with your heart in the premier tour, with your head in the second, and that is what prodeuced the extraordinary situation of April 2002. Without going into detail of the campaign at the time, it is necessary to know that people were pissed off with the right, in the form of Jacques Chirac who had been a useless and corrupt politician for years as well as President for the past seven. However, people were equally disillusioned with the left, represented by the fluffy Lionel Jospin who lacked charisma and had failed to unite the left (a tricky business in France as it spans the communists to the center-left) and who had been the Prme minister since 1997 (there's cohabitation in action).
Add to that charismatic candidates such as the handsome young postman Olivier Besancenot (from the LCR, Communist revolutionary league), issues such as the environment being taken more seriously, fears over immigration and security (the National Front's bête noire for years) and general disinterest and mistrust in the political world, and what do you get? The 21st of April 2002, now a synonym for disaster in France.
What happened is this: the left split, mostly profiting the extreme left and the Greens as well as a more central candidate. Jospin did badly. The right, more stable, got Old Chirac through, but the real shock was who ended up facing him: Jean-Marie Le Pen.
JMLP is a dinosaur of politics, he has been around for about 50 years, and created his National Front party in 1972 (le Front National, or FN). His basic political line has been "screw the right and screw the left even more, get rid of the thieving immigrants, get out of Europe, re-establish the death penalty, bring back order to the Republic ". He has had enlightening slogans such "3 million unemployed, 3 million immigrants" and is famous for saying that the Nazi gas chambers were "a detail of history". He is in other words a xenophobic old fart, who has consistently blamed communism, socialism, immigration and Europe as the roots of all trouble for the past 40 years or more. He is also as right wing as it is possible to be, though even right-wing old Chirac has refused to shake hands with him. He is generally considered a threat to Republican values of "liberté, égalité, fraternité".
His presence in the second tour was seen as a disaster by pretty much everyone except his own supporters who, as this election showed, appeared to be more numerous than previously thought, though later analysis showed that many who voted for him were making use of a "protest vote', rather than voicing a firm adhesion to his beliefs. A huge campaign from all other parties took place in the two weeks between the premier and second tours, and even the left, grimacing, called to vote for Chirac, who won the election with over 80% of votes.
France was stuck with Old Chirac for the next five years, but this episode rocked the very foundations of French politics.
Zoom to 2006, the 2007 election is already on everyone's lips. How to avoid a similar scenario, how to get the left back on the scene, how to get the old droite-gauche polarisation back at the second tour. Quickly the notion of "le vote utile', the useful vote, appeared. Rather than vote with your heart at the first round, vote for who you would most like to see at the second. The question is, who?
La Droite, or rather the UMP (Union por un mouvement populaire) - Chirac's party, the government's party and the majority party in Parliament - chose Nicolas Sarkozy, Interior minister of the time who has also done a stint as Budget and finances minister and Prime minister, as its leader. There will be other posts on Sarkozy, all that needs to be said now is that this man, a lawyer, son of a Hungarian immigrant and in politics since his twenties is known as the man who, as Interior minister and head of the Police, said he would "nettoie les banlieues au Karcher", which can be roughly translated as "wash down the banlieues with a jet hose" to get crime and delinquancy down. This did not go down well in the banlieues, the urban agglomerations found round France's big cities and sometimes characterised by poverty, crime and lack of opportunities. A separate post on the 2005 riots will go in to more detail.
Sarkozy is also big on "travailler plus pour gagner plus", or "work more to earn more". This is in reference to the 35 hour working week the Left put in place in 1998 and the low purchasing power of the French. He also supports reforms that would allow minors to be treated like over 18s in certain cases and, through the laws he passed has been taking foreigners back to the border, including children who go to school in France.
On the other side, within la Gauche, or the PS (Parti socialiste) things were more complicated. Someone was needed who could sweep away the failure of Lionel Jospin, unite a left which was, and still is deeply divided on issues such as Europe and how to get the economy back in shape. The first step was therefore to hold primary elections within the PS to see who would be a favorable candidate. The choice was between Laurent Fabius, former Prime minister and more recently known for leading part of the PS to vote NO at the EU Consitutionnal treaty referendum. The second, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, a professor of Economics and politics at Paris prestigious Insitut d'études politiques (Political science institute, IEP or Sciences Po as it is known) and former budget and finances minister who helped design the 35 heures (35 hour working week). Finally was Ségolène Royal, who has been minister several times - for the Environment, Family and social affairs, linked tgo the Education ministry- as well as a member of Parliament and a regional representative.
Hours of debate were organised on France's Parliamentary channel (LCP) so that PS members could choose the best. Fabius was like a tired old lettuce, demanding instant, impossible pay rises, public investment and sounding rather like the left of the left on many social and economic issues. DSK was a sleek badger, a man who keeps his cool and obviously competent on most issues, pro-European and conscious of the need to reform the economy to survive globalisation. Segolene, fresher and younger-looking, was firm and spoke clearly and loudly with a kind of rictus-smile on her face, but was rather monotonous and bossy.
After weeks of this, Segolene won, a woman, a beautiful one, who says is determined to change France, modernise "her" (France is a woman, symbolised by the revlutionnary figure of Marianne), with a modern, firm, 'juste' woman at her head.
So the official campaign starts, the media is mobilsed, conversations monopolised, arguments dominated by "who are you going to vote for?". Without recounting the campaign, here are some personal highlights, in no particular order or degree of importance:
* Sarkozy, still Interior ministry, is shat upon for the way he handled the riots, his provocative statements regarding the inhabitants of the banlieues, his remarks on Muslims (slaughtering sheep in the bath and so on), his capacity to create opposition between chunks of society (workers/unemployed; immigrants/French; rich/poor etc). He is also criticised for taking many ideas from the FN and arresting 'illegals' in careless and inhumane ways, such as the 70+ old who was arrested in broad daylight when he came to get his grandchild from school.
* Ségolène goes to China, and says France has much to learn from the country's "efficient" justice system
* François Bayrou, and old figure of France's centre party (the UDF, less than 7% of votes at the last Presidentials) cries "enough of all this left-right crap, we need to reunite!" and overnight becomes France's third man of French politics.
* Le Pen, the octogenarian dinosaur with a glass eye (though this is an improvement of the patch he wore in the 70s), full of "send the immigrant back! law and order!" becomes a fluffy old grandad and tours the tv sets with his loud and arrogant daughter Marine, boasting that whatever is being said by Sarkozy as regards controlling immigration was first said by him. Sadly, he is right.
* Sarkozy becomes increasingly convincing, an excellent orator, putting forward "values" such as hard work, law and order, respect for the Republic, protection of the poor, the destitute and the handicapped. He speaks well and passionately, has an answer to everything and in most confrontations crushes he opponent.
*Segolene is considered increasingly incompetent, and there are people from within her party who grumble about her. Claude Allegre, ex-education minister who worked with her, says he hates her and her methods. Eric Besson, one of her counsellers writes a book saying he fears for his children in the France she would run. She seems to have a superficial knowledge of everything, has a rather monotonous voice, and repeats statements loudly time and time again.
*Segolene, candidate of the PS, is more or less married to the First secretary of the PS, François Hollande with whom she has four kids. On tv, her counsellor Arnaud to Montebourg answers the question "what is Ségolène's worst fault?" with "Francois Hollande". Silence on live tv. He is fired.
*Bayrou's popularity increases, stabilises, increases, decreases, stabilises. People start wondering how realistic a centre (centre right usually) President is. How will he form a majority? Who would he work with? He suggests DSK. No way, says the latter.
* Segolene is popular in the banlieues, who have seen their electoral lists swell with people who are against Sarkozy. Sarkozy cannot even go to certain banlieues, especially in the north of Paris, after what he said during and after the riots of November 2005. He has moved to headquarters in the relatively working class/immigrant area in Paris's 10th arrondissement. You can't miss it, twenty police vans are parked outside all the time.
*Sarkozy is accused by French paper, le Canard enchainé, of paying virtually nothing for his huge flat in his constituency, and various other dodgy deals. All is denied and wrapped up quickly.
*Candidates publish their income and capital. Sarkozy and Segolene pay the ISF (Tax on fortune), not Bayrou.
*Other candidates are first of all cutie trotskyist Besancenot, the postman who wants immediate raises in salaries, schools and health, as well as renationalisation of all privatised huge businesses, all this financed with stripping profits from multinationals. He speaks very well and his youth and passion work well with left-wing women who dislike Segolene for being a rather harsh and bossy boot.
*Sarkozy is accused of being authoritarian, controlling, overly ambitious at a personal level, corrupt, borderline mad and hysterical.
*Segolene, being tricked on a radio show where she thinks she is talking to the Prime Minister of Canada, jokes about getting rid of the Corsicans. This flapped about as further proof of her incompetence.
*The scooter of Sarkozy's 14 year old son is stolen. DNA matching is required, the secret services mobilised, the bomb warmed up. Well, it was rather outrageous how many cops were on the case.
* Other candidates include Philippe de Villiers, Patriot, right wing, anti-Europe, pro his region which is the traditional realm of the noble, catholic and monarchist French who escaped the Republican Revolution. He talks as if he is drunk/has a bar of soap in his throat, strangled and pulling his mouth all round his face, stopping every six seconds to lick the corner of his mouth. Wants a flag in every school.
* Segolene goes mad. Realising that everyone is cashing on the 'Vive la France' card, she suggests a flag in every school and sings La Marseillaise at conferences. Until now this has been strictly right-wing territory. Le Pen laughs.
*Sarkozy sucks up to the workers, 'la France qui se leve tot" (the France that gets up early), tours warehouses and old industrial plants, shakes a million hands and quotes ideas of great left wing thinkers, Jaurès and Blum. Segolene and the rest of the Left laugh.
*Other candidates are mainly left wing. Besancenot aside, we have Marie -Georges Buffet of the Communist party (PC), shrill and rapid-firing about massive pay-offs and profits, financial havens, poor worker conditions. José Bové is a self declared peasant, internationalist, environmentalist, anti-WTO, anti-GM, anti FN. Dominique Voynet is the Green candidate who is sending off emergencu signals, and Arlette Laguillier who has been around almost as long as Le Pen, of the workers party wishes to defend the Proletarians, who are now voting Sarkozy and Le Pen. Everyone laughs.
*Sarkozy goes mad. In an interview with 'Philosophie magazine' he says that certain personnality traits such as delinquancy, paedophilia and homosexuality are innate, and down to nature not nurture. Bayrou, twelve days after this statement, says "er, is anybody going to pick up on this?", and the Press go crazy.
*Other candidates are so small nobody remembers them: the tall youngish guy, Frederic Nihous, from the "preserve 'em hunt'em fish 'em it's tradition" party (CPNT) and the guy nobody has heard of, Gérard Schivardi, who is, well, we don't know. he wants to leave the EU seems to be the only fact.
So Sunday the 21st of April, in the middle of France's April heatwave, people totter off to vote. Strict rules say that no indication of who is winning must ne known before 8. What does rapidly appear however is the huge turnout. Voting outlets must be kept open longer than planned, the queues are huge, it's a record for the Vth Republic; 85% of the electorate turned up.
It's soon clear that Sarkozy and Ségolène have gone through. Segolene gets 25,87% , Sarkozy gets 31,18%. Bayrou got only 18%, after months at around 20-23% and thoughts that he would get through. Le Pen is crushed at 10%, his lowest score for twenty years (Hurray!) though most of those votes now simply lie with Sarkozy.
All tv channels are on it but with little to say. Le Pen is pissed off, Bayrou is disappointed, calling for unity, Sarkozy is beaming and nervously leaping about, Segolene is lying low while hundreds are waiting for her in the streets of Paris. Debates start between different parties, a drunken bernard Tapie, ex-left now with Sarkozy is drunk and slurs he supports "Ségolène, er...Sarkozy".
We are now only five days away from the decisive second round. In the last ten days, Bayrou and Ségolène have got closer, even having a tv debate much to the anger of Sarkozy who is saying she therefore gets extra airing time. Sarkozy appears to be increasingly dangerous, some papers are presentinghim as controlling the media and dangerous for democracy. There is going to be a debate between him and Ségolène on Wednesday May 2nd. The thing is, he is a very good orator despite his manic little frame, and she is rather bootfaced and posh and stern despite her pretty face. It will be 'a confrontation of ideas, of personnalities" and one can only pray to God, she will appear more convincing than him.
It isn't my aim here to go through all the blurb that has been wafting our way, it would take pages to write up and the internet is full of sites that will explain it more accurately. However, here is a brief history of what, in my view, have been the main milestones in this campaign.
It is worth bearing in mind that France is a pluralist democracy which, unlike Britain or the US say which are caracterised by their bipartisan approach, boasts a large number of political parties, though most are clearly less important (in the sense of size and influence) than a few.
French political culture is still deeply anchored in what is called "le clivage gauche/droite ". Left wingers ("la gauche") and right wingers ("la droite") have had a conflictual relationship since the 60s, and "l'alternance", i.e. replacing la droite with la gauche or vice-versa at practically every election, has been a huge feature of French political life for years. "La cohabitation", describing the situation where the head of State (the President of the Republic) and the head of government (the Prime minister) are of different political colours has also been a feature of the France's Vth Republic politics. (The Vth Republic dates from 1958 when Charles De Gaulle, hero of the Resistance in WW2, designed a Constitution that gave the President quasi-monarchic powers). The combination of l'alternance and la cohabitation, plus the status of the President has meant for the last 30 years or so that France's political scene has been shambolic, based on rejection of the last lot in power and impossible cooperations at the highest levels of State.
It is equally important to recap how the French electoral system works for the Presidentials. Any person wishing to present him/herself must gather signatures from 500 of France's 36000 mayors. Once these have been validated by the Conseil Constitutionnnel, France's equivalent to a Constitutional Court, the candidates proceed to the first round ("le premier tour").
Traditionnally it is an eclectic bunch that campaigns for that premier tour. Green, communist, extreme-right, center, rural right, urban right, left, international left, you name it, you can probable find it, but the great feature of the VthRepublic is that no matter who you vote for in the first round, the left wing candidate will face the right wing candidate in the "second tour", which is held two weeks after the first.
Until 2002 that is, which is milestone one in my analysis.
The French say that you vote with your heart in the premier tour, with your head in the second, and that is what prodeuced the extraordinary situation of April 2002. Without going into detail of the campaign at the time, it is necessary to know that people were pissed off with the right, in the form of Jacques Chirac who had been a useless and corrupt politician for years as well as President for the past seven. However, people were equally disillusioned with the left, represented by the fluffy Lionel Jospin who lacked charisma and had failed to unite the left (a tricky business in France as it spans the communists to the center-left) and who had been the Prme minister since 1997 (there's cohabitation in action).
Add to that charismatic candidates such as the handsome young postman Olivier Besancenot (from the LCR, Communist revolutionary league), issues such as the environment being taken more seriously, fears over immigration and security (the National Front's bête noire for years) and general disinterest and mistrust in the political world, and what do you get? The 21st of April 2002, now a synonym for disaster in France.
What happened is this: the left split, mostly profiting the extreme left and the Greens as well as a more central candidate. Jospin did badly. The right, more stable, got Old Chirac through, but the real shock was who ended up facing him: Jean-Marie Le Pen.
JMLP is a dinosaur of politics, he has been around for about 50 years, and created his National Front party in 1972 (le Front National, or FN). His basic political line has been "screw the right and screw the left even more, get rid of the thieving immigrants, get out of Europe, re-establish the death penalty, bring back order to the Republic ". He has had enlightening slogans such "3 million unemployed, 3 million immigrants" and is famous for saying that the Nazi gas chambers were "a detail of history". He is in other words a xenophobic old fart, who has consistently blamed communism, socialism, immigration and Europe as the roots of all trouble for the past 40 years or more. He is also as right wing as it is possible to be, though even right-wing old Chirac has refused to shake hands with him. He is generally considered a threat to Republican values of "liberté, égalité, fraternité".
His presence in the second tour was seen as a disaster by pretty much everyone except his own supporters who, as this election showed, appeared to be more numerous than previously thought, though later analysis showed that many who voted for him were making use of a "protest vote', rather than voicing a firm adhesion to his beliefs. A huge campaign from all other parties took place in the two weeks between the premier and second tours, and even the left, grimacing, called to vote for Chirac, who won the election with over 80% of votes.
France was stuck with Old Chirac for the next five years, but this episode rocked the very foundations of French politics.
Zoom to 2006, the 2007 election is already on everyone's lips. How to avoid a similar scenario, how to get the left back on the scene, how to get the old droite-gauche polarisation back at the second tour. Quickly the notion of "le vote utile', the useful vote, appeared. Rather than vote with your heart at the first round, vote for who you would most like to see at the second. The question is, who?
La Droite, or rather the UMP (Union por un mouvement populaire) - Chirac's party, the government's party and the majority party in Parliament - chose Nicolas Sarkozy, Interior minister of the time who has also done a stint as Budget and finances minister and Prime minister, as its leader. There will be other posts on Sarkozy, all that needs to be said now is that this man, a lawyer, son of a Hungarian immigrant and in politics since his twenties is known as the man who, as Interior minister and head of the Police, said he would "nettoie les banlieues au Karcher", which can be roughly translated as "wash down the banlieues with a jet hose" to get crime and delinquancy down. This did not go down well in the banlieues, the urban agglomerations found round France's big cities and sometimes characterised by poverty, crime and lack of opportunities. A separate post on the 2005 riots will go in to more detail.
Sarkozy is also big on "travailler plus pour gagner plus", or "work more to earn more". This is in reference to the 35 hour working week the Left put in place in 1998 and the low purchasing power of the French. He also supports reforms that would allow minors to be treated like over 18s in certain cases and, through the laws he passed has been taking foreigners back to the border, including children who go to school in France.
On the other side, within la Gauche, or the PS (Parti socialiste) things were more complicated. Someone was needed who could sweep away the failure of Lionel Jospin, unite a left which was, and still is deeply divided on issues such as Europe and how to get the economy back in shape. The first step was therefore to hold primary elections within the PS to see who would be a favorable candidate. The choice was between Laurent Fabius, former Prime minister and more recently known for leading part of the PS to vote NO at the EU Consitutionnal treaty referendum. The second, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, a professor of Economics and politics at Paris prestigious Insitut d'études politiques (Political science institute, IEP or Sciences Po as it is known) and former budget and finances minister who helped design the 35 heures (35 hour working week). Finally was Ségolène Royal, who has been minister several times - for the Environment, Family and social affairs, linked tgo the Education ministry- as well as a member of Parliament and a regional representative.
Hours of debate were organised on France's Parliamentary channel (LCP) so that PS members could choose the best. Fabius was like a tired old lettuce, demanding instant, impossible pay rises, public investment and sounding rather like the left of the left on many social and economic issues. DSK was a sleek badger, a man who keeps his cool and obviously competent on most issues, pro-European and conscious of the need to reform the economy to survive globalisation. Segolene, fresher and younger-looking, was firm and spoke clearly and loudly with a kind of rictus-smile on her face, but was rather monotonous and bossy.
After weeks of this, Segolene won, a woman, a beautiful one, who says is determined to change France, modernise "her" (France is a woman, symbolised by the revlutionnary figure of Marianne), with a modern, firm, 'juste' woman at her head.
So the official campaign starts, the media is mobilsed, conversations monopolised, arguments dominated by "who are you going to vote for?". Without recounting the campaign, here are some personal highlights, in no particular order or degree of importance:
* Sarkozy, still Interior ministry, is shat upon for the way he handled the riots, his provocative statements regarding the inhabitants of the banlieues, his remarks on Muslims (slaughtering sheep in the bath and so on), his capacity to create opposition between chunks of society (workers/unemployed; immigrants/French; rich/poor etc). He is also criticised for taking many ideas from the FN and arresting 'illegals' in careless and inhumane ways, such as the 70+ old who was arrested in broad daylight when he came to get his grandchild from school.
* Ségolène goes to China, and says France has much to learn from the country's "efficient" justice system
* François Bayrou, and old figure of France's centre party (the UDF, less than 7% of votes at the last Presidentials) cries "enough of all this left-right crap, we need to reunite!" and overnight becomes France's third man of French politics.
* Le Pen, the octogenarian dinosaur with a glass eye (though this is an improvement of the patch he wore in the 70s), full of "send the immigrant back! law and order!" becomes a fluffy old grandad and tours the tv sets with his loud and arrogant daughter Marine, boasting that whatever is being said by Sarkozy as regards controlling immigration was first said by him. Sadly, he is right.
* Sarkozy becomes increasingly convincing, an excellent orator, putting forward "values" such as hard work, law and order, respect for the Republic, protection of the poor, the destitute and the handicapped. He speaks well and passionately, has an answer to everything and in most confrontations crushes he opponent.
*Segolene is considered increasingly incompetent, and there are people from within her party who grumble about her. Claude Allegre, ex-education minister who worked with her, says he hates her and her methods. Eric Besson, one of her counsellers writes a book saying he fears for his children in the France she would run. She seems to have a superficial knowledge of everything, has a rather monotonous voice, and repeats statements loudly time and time again.
*Segolene, candidate of the PS, is more or less married to the First secretary of the PS, François Hollande with whom she has four kids. On tv, her counsellor Arnaud to Montebourg answers the question "what is Ségolène's worst fault?" with "Francois Hollande". Silence on live tv. He is fired.
*Bayrou's popularity increases, stabilises, increases, decreases, stabilises. People start wondering how realistic a centre (centre right usually) President is. How will he form a majority? Who would he work with? He suggests DSK. No way, says the latter.
* Segolene is popular in the banlieues, who have seen their electoral lists swell with people who are against Sarkozy. Sarkozy cannot even go to certain banlieues, especially in the north of Paris, after what he said during and after the riots of November 2005. He has moved to headquarters in the relatively working class/immigrant area in Paris's 10th arrondissement. You can't miss it, twenty police vans are parked outside all the time.
*Sarkozy is accused by French paper, le Canard enchainé, of paying virtually nothing for his huge flat in his constituency, and various other dodgy deals. All is denied and wrapped up quickly.
*Candidates publish their income and capital. Sarkozy and Segolene pay the ISF (Tax on fortune), not Bayrou.
*Other candidates are first of all cutie trotskyist Besancenot, the postman who wants immediate raises in salaries, schools and health, as well as renationalisation of all privatised huge businesses, all this financed with stripping profits from multinationals. He speaks very well and his youth and passion work well with left-wing women who dislike Segolene for being a rather harsh and bossy boot.
*Sarkozy is accused of being authoritarian, controlling, overly ambitious at a personal level, corrupt, borderline mad and hysterical.
*Segolene, being tricked on a radio show where she thinks she is talking to the Prime Minister of Canada, jokes about getting rid of the Corsicans. This flapped about as further proof of her incompetence.
*The scooter of Sarkozy's 14 year old son is stolen. DNA matching is required, the secret services mobilised, the bomb warmed up. Well, it was rather outrageous how many cops were on the case.
* Other candidates include Philippe de Villiers, Patriot, right wing, anti-Europe, pro his region which is the traditional realm of the noble, catholic and monarchist French who escaped the Republican Revolution. He talks as if he is drunk/has a bar of soap in his throat, strangled and pulling his mouth all round his face, stopping every six seconds to lick the corner of his mouth. Wants a flag in every school.
* Segolene goes mad. Realising that everyone is cashing on the 'Vive la France' card, she suggests a flag in every school and sings La Marseillaise at conferences. Until now this has been strictly right-wing territory. Le Pen laughs.
*Sarkozy sucks up to the workers, 'la France qui se leve tot" (the France that gets up early), tours warehouses and old industrial plants, shakes a million hands and quotes ideas of great left wing thinkers, Jaurès and Blum. Segolene and the rest of the Left laugh.
*Other candidates are mainly left wing. Besancenot aside, we have Marie -Georges Buffet of the Communist party (PC), shrill and rapid-firing about massive pay-offs and profits, financial havens, poor worker conditions. José Bové is a self declared peasant, internationalist, environmentalist, anti-WTO, anti-GM, anti FN. Dominique Voynet is the Green candidate who is sending off emergencu signals, and Arlette Laguillier who has been around almost as long as Le Pen, of the workers party wishes to defend the Proletarians, who are now voting Sarkozy and Le Pen. Everyone laughs.
*Sarkozy goes mad. In an interview with 'Philosophie magazine' he says that certain personnality traits such as delinquancy, paedophilia and homosexuality are innate, and down to nature not nurture. Bayrou, twelve days after this statement, says "er, is anybody going to pick up on this?", and the Press go crazy.
*Other candidates are so small nobody remembers them: the tall youngish guy, Frederic Nihous, from the "preserve 'em hunt'em fish 'em it's tradition" party (CPNT) and the guy nobody has heard of, Gérard Schivardi, who is, well, we don't know. he wants to leave the EU seems to be the only fact.
So Sunday the 21st of April, in the middle of France's April heatwave, people totter off to vote. Strict rules say that no indication of who is winning must ne known before 8. What does rapidly appear however is the huge turnout. Voting outlets must be kept open longer than planned, the queues are huge, it's a record for the Vth Republic; 85% of the electorate turned up.
It's soon clear that Sarkozy and Ségolène have gone through. Segolene gets 25,87% , Sarkozy gets 31,18%. Bayrou got only 18%, after months at around 20-23% and thoughts that he would get through. Le Pen is crushed at 10%, his lowest score for twenty years (Hurray!) though most of those votes now simply lie with Sarkozy.
All tv channels are on it but with little to say. Le Pen is pissed off, Bayrou is disappointed, calling for unity, Sarkozy is beaming and nervously leaping about, Segolene is lying low while hundreds are waiting for her in the streets of Paris. Debates start between different parties, a drunken bernard Tapie, ex-left now with Sarkozy is drunk and slurs he supports "Ségolène, er...Sarkozy".
We are now only five days away from the decisive second round. In the last ten days, Bayrou and Ségolène have got closer, even having a tv debate much to the anger of Sarkozy who is saying she therefore gets extra airing time. Sarkozy appears to be increasingly dangerous, some papers are presentinghim as controlling the media and dangerous for democracy. There is going to be a debate between him and Ségolène on Wednesday May 2nd. The thing is, he is a very good orator despite his manic little frame, and she is rather bootfaced and posh and stern despite her pretty face. It will be 'a confrontation of ideas, of personnalities" and one can only pray to God, she will appear more convincing than him.
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