The French left welcomes the new year preoccupied with its internal turmoil. It will mark the month of January in France retirement war. The Government of Emmanuel Macron will present January 10 a reform of this system, where the retirement age will be raised from 62 (43 contributes to full pension) to 64 or 65. All unions have already expressed their opposition to this measure and will organize demonstrations and strikes in the coming weeks.
There is no doubt that it will be a good scenario for him. unitary coalition of the left (NUPES) is leading the opposition to the Macronist Executive. After an autumn already marked by such an autumn, it is a moment of social strife rather than endless debates of identity in favor of Marine Le Pen’s far-right, which progressive formations might miss due to their inconsistency and internal taunts. relationships.
This Socialist Party (PS) is immersed in the preparations of his own game. National CongressIt will be held on the last weekend of January. The advisability of maintaining (or not maintaining) the existing electoral and parliamentary alliance with the remaining left formations (Disobedient France, greens and communists) will be the focus of the discussions in this national council.
Jean-Luc Mélenchon’s rebels – currently the main force of the group rude In the presidential elections held in April, they are also going through a turbulent period, while they received close to 22% of the vote, while other progressive candidates did not exceed 5%. Podemos’ allies in France, relationship former number two Adrien Quatennens was sentenced to four months in prison for slapping his wife in December. Moreover, criticism of the Critics has increased in recent weeks. lack of internal democracy in this ecosocialist formation.
Transcendent Congress at PS
“There is a risk of withdrawal today, both sides are only concerned with their own business,” warned the PS general secretary, Oliver FaureIn an interview published in the progressive newspaper on Wednesday liberation. The current leadership of the socialists will advocate the preservation of NUPES at the Marseille congress, especially considering the 2027 presidential election. not in the second round three times in twenty years (2002, 2017 and 2022)?” asks the PS general secretary.
Faure, however, will discuss the reins of this century-old formation in a largely rundown way. two opposition lists, one of which was supported by the mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo. Representatives of these critical currents are much more secretive about the current alliance with other left parties that has broken through 25 years of fragmentation. rude.
Created after the presidential election in May, NUPES allowed left-wing parties to triple the number of seats and win elections. 151 deputieswhich made them the main opposition force against macronism in the National Assembly. “This is a fragile alliance, but more stable in Parliament than originally thought. There has been a lot of shared struggle,” says Fabien Escalona, a political analyst for the digital newspaper. media division. “But the question now is whether this can be something that goes beyond the National Assembly,” adds this social democratic expert.
Will they repeat the coalition for Europeans?
Although left-wing MPs have converged in the majority of the votes in recent months, reflecting the ideological convergence between the different parties, it is not at all clear whether they will continue the coalition in the next elections. After changing their general secretary in December, Green has already announced that it will be presented separately at the fair. 2024 europe. The current leadership of the French Communist Party (PCF), whose continuity depends on its congress in the spring, also chooses this option.
As far as Europeans are concerned, Provides electoral systeml—each party receives MEPs equivalent to its own percentage of votes—in favor of this division But those who favor the continuation of NUPES, especially insurgents and some of the Socialists, fear that this breakup in 2024 will mark the beginning of the end of the coalition. Against the greens, who do not close the door to the repetition of this alliance in the 2027 presidential and parliamentary elections, but want his party to gain more weight, Tondelier says, “Each member should have his own garden.”
“Everyone on the left is waiting for what will happen. The future of Mélenchon and the difficulty of revealing possible successor”, recalls Escalona. This veteran leader, who received 19% of the votes in the 2017 presidential elections and close to 22% in this year’s elections, consolidated himself as the new leader of the French left. But given that he will be 75 years old in 2027 and that he has decided to resign after the parliamentary elections, the possibility of not being a candidate in the next presidential election is in the air despite the very personal nature of politics. France. According to Escalona, “Depending on who is Mélenchon’s successor, other parties believe they can gain ground. And in the case of the Socialist Party there is that hope”.