An Ifop poll this month found that 80% of French people believe the campaign was “poor quality”. Voters have complained of a lack of new political ideas or vision and few solutions to their problems, two years after the Covid pandemic, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and a cost-of-life crisis. Emanuel Macron is campaigning to become the first French president in 20 years to be re-elected, promising to continue cutting taxes, raising the retirement age to 65 and bringing France to full-time employment after decades of mass unemployment. But he entered the race slowly, focusing on diplomacy with Vladimir Putin and saw his lead fall slightly in recent days, with far-right Marin Lepen closing the gap in second place. Le Pen has focused on the cost of living crisis, while its anti-immigration program would ban the Muslim headscarf from all public places. Hardline left-wing Jean-Luc Mélenchon is also going to the polls, promising to freeze prices and review the presidential system. Despite the main concerns of French voters – the cost of living crisis, the war in Ukraine and the environment – there has been less interest in this campaign than in the last presidential election five years ago. There were fewer rallies and voters complained that there was no live televised debate between all the candidates. As the first round campaign entered its final week, 54% of people said they felt it had not started yet. An unprecedented number of French voters say they are unsure who to vote for and abstentions could reach a record high of up to 30% on Sunday. Macron tried to mobilize his constituents by likening the political mood in the United Kingdom to the 2016 Brexit vote. “There is no certainty,” he warned at his only rally in Nanterre outside Paris, setting aside his lead at the polls. “Do not believe polls or commentators who sound final and tell you that εκ the election has already taken place, that everything will go well. “From Brexit to so many elections, what seems unlikely can happen!” Macron later said in a radio interview that he felt that society was “tired of two years of Covid” and “surprised” by the war in Ukraine. He claimed that “real issues” had indeed been discussed in the campaign, saying “war is a real issue!” but acknowledged that there was “a collective question as to whether the vote still made sense”. He argued that the vote was crucial. Pollsters say the fact that this election was considered a preconceived notion for months – that Macron would easily win – could affect turnout and choices and create the impression of voters wanting to prove the predictions wrong. A total of 66% of French people currently believe that Macron will win – a percentage that has fallen in recent weeks as Le Pen’s support has grown. Feelings of tiredness and preconceived notions have been compared to the 2002 election “earthquake” 20 years ago, when Le Pen’s father, far-right Jean-Marie Le Pen, hit the left to reach the final against Jacques Chirac. “Just like today, in 2002 there was a constant sense of a failed campaign, which in turn created a temptation to vote in protest,” said François Mike-Marti, head of Viavoice polls. “Our poll shows that 75% of French people believe that there are no really new ideas in this campaign. And at the same time, 76% of people are worried about the future of their children. “There is a feeling that the solutions offered in this campaign are not enough.” French media and analysts have described the campaign as a wake-up call for voters in a country already devastated by the crisis. Communist candidate Fabien Roussel this week described the campaign as “morphine-like”. “This campaign is shit,” Jean Lassalle, a southwestern agricultural lawmaker, said in a television interview in February, and the video has been circulating ever since. The early campaign began last fall amid the Omicron wave of Covid infections. Then the sudden rise of far-right television expert Éric Zemmour initially pushed the issue of national identity to the top of the agenda. But the war in Ukraine eventually made headlines. Macron postponed the start of his election campaign, initially taking advantage of a kind of boost in the “flag rally” in the polls. At the moment, Macron has retreated, although he has the lead, while Le Pen and Melanson are rising and Zemour has sunk back into the polls.
