Let's face France

#138

My Dear Friend of Democracy,

I would like to avoid looking at France these days. But there's no point.

So today, a letter about the runoff elections that will take place next Sunday.

No matter how they will turn out, they will not end well.

There are just two possibilities:

1) Marine Le Pen's far-right National Rally secures an absolute majority in the National Assembly — taking 289 seats or more.

2) National Rally falls short of a majority, leaving France with a hung Parliament.

Although the first option is worse than the second, both will lead France into troubled times.

This is how Philippe Marlière, professor of French and European politics at University College London, puts it:

"The country is entering a period of great volatility and turmoil. Stability will be a thing of the past. For a country facing big economic, social and even military challenges, that’s a daunting prospect. Such disarray is unlikely to dispel the lure of the far right, promising change from a broken system, when the presidential election comes around in 2027."

Optimism looks different.

But as you know, optimism is a duty.

✊ Perhaps we must accept that right-wing populists have to come to power so that those who voted for them can realise that populist promises are mostly empty promises. The disenchantment of populists through realpolitik. If we are to follow this dangerous path, we will have to work even harder than today to ensure that the power of those populist and extremist parties does not mean the end of democracy.

See you in Europe,

Johannes