In 2024, in the midst of dissolution, Alexis Kohler, a key figure of the Hollande presidency, is perplexed. The General Secretary of the Elysee Palace wants to understand: how could the left, torn apart since October 7th, suddenly find itself within the New Popular Front in just a few hours? The answer from his interlocutor: “Politics is not something for philanthropists.” An adage reminiscent of Audiard’s style, as the latest municipal elections have shown. After weeks of denouncing “anti-Semitic remarks” or “conspiracy theories” by Jean-Luc Mélenchon, the Socialist Party (PS) leaped into the arms of the Unsubmissive in a number of metropolises.
To the delight of the “leader Maximo,” who had boasted a few days earlier about these “big schemers” who wouldn’t “much cost buying.” And to the immense disappointment of those on the left who, looking towards 2027, were banking on these municipal elections to mark the marginalization of the Unsubmissive. Weakened by the defeat of the mayor (Place publique) of Saint-Brieuc, Raphaël Glucksmann, who withdrew his candidates from the lists associated with Mélenchonists, once again appeared powerless in the face of party apparatuses. At the same time, close associates of François Hollande, in Brest or Tulle, struck deals with LFI. Olivier Faure did not hesitate to point this out. As for Carole Delga, the head of the Occitanie region, who swore at the beginning of March to Le Point: “Mélenchon is finished, it will be downhill from here,” she couldn’t prevent the PS-LFI alliance in Toulouse. Reality hits when we collide.
However, on the evening of the second round, after biding their time, the left-wing barons opposed to the Unsubmissive thought they saw a glimmer of hope. Do the defeats of the coalition between the Socialist and Communist parties in Avignon, Clermont-Ferrand, and Toulouse not prove them right? “LFI is toxic for the left!” exclaims Sacha Houlié, a former Macron supporter now aligned with Place publique. On Sunday, March 22, Paris Center Mayor Ariel Weil, a vocal anti-LFI figure from the Parisian Socialist Party, just re-elected, had successive interactions with Raphaël Glucksmann and François Hollande. They all agreed: it was time to raise the stakes.
“The voters have spoken: they want clarity,” asserts Raphaël Glucksmann to Le Point. “My determination to carry this line without compromise is total.” Two days after the election, while socialists were in turmoil at a national meeting, François Hollande was in a Parisian brasserie with potential presidential candidates, including Bernard Cazeneuve, Jérôme Guedj, and Aurore Lalucq, co-president of Place publique. Speaking to the assembled group on the anniversary of the Laurent Joffrin’s Libre Journal, the former president, with microphone in hand, declared: “The left can win the presidential election!” Clarifying that it would be his version of the left, not Olivier Faure’s, who was busy arguing with Marine Tondelier or François Ruffin.
Context: This article discusses the shifting alliances and power struggles within the left-wing political landscape in France, particularly following key electoral events and coalition formations.
Fact Check: The content of the article accurately reflects the political maneuvers and strategic alignments within French left-wing parties.
