It’s almost here: on Apr. 22, the first round of the French presidential elections will take place. Even if polls are saying that Emmanuel Macron and Marine Le Pen will be the ones to reach the second round, it’s for the moment hard for the french population to know who will be the winner because of the multitude of different parties fighting against each other. Take a brief look on all the eleven candidates battling to take over the Elysée.
- Nathalie Arthaud
Fervent communist, spokesperson of the “Lutte Ouvrière” party – which fights for workers rights – Nathalie Arthaud is candidate for the french presidency for the second time in her life. Not really known from her compatriots, she doesn’t figure among the favorites and is most likely to fail in the first round according to polls.
- François Fillon
François Fillon used to be the favorite in the race to presidency before it was revealed that fake high-payed jobs were given to members of his family and more precisely to his wife Pénélope between 1997 and 2007. The former prime minister still denies his role in this case and refuses to stop his campaign even if his chances to win are at the lowest.
- Nicolas Dupont-Aignan
The anti-euro (but not pro-Frexit) Nicolas Dupont-Aignan really drew attention this year when he left a TV show because he was mad at the channel for not giving him the chance to participate in a broadcasted presidential debate. It’s the second candidature for Nicolas Dupont-Aignan but his chances to win the first round of these elections are too low to consider a victory.
- Marine Le Pen
French far-right National Front leader Marine Le Pen is able to reach the second round of the elections according to polls. She’s known to be the daughter of Jean-Marie Le Pen, the anti-semite, racist and homophobic former president of the National Front with whom she shares the ideology. Just like Fillon, she also has conflicts with justice about fake jobs within her party. She would gladly work in collaboration with Trump and Putin if she is elected.
- Philippe Poutou
Philippe Poutou, even if he isn’t one of the favorites, wasn’t afraid to confront them when he participated to the 2nd broadcasted debate who took place on Apr.4, taking Le Pen and Fillon by surprise when he criticized their lack of rigor and exemplarity when it comes to their prosecutions. The far-left candidate doesn’t expect to be elected but uses this election as a way to make his voice heard.
- Jean-Luc Mélanchon
A well-known figure of french politic life since the 1990s, Mélanchon is the face of the France Insoumise (the Unbridled France) party this year, after his defeat in the left primaries last January with the Front de Gauche. He is not afraid to attack the other candidates when it comes to debates to defend his far-left ideas and is appreciated thanks to his sarcasm and his unapologetic sense of humor.
- François Asselineau
Asselineau is the only pro-Frexit candidate of these elections. He is also anti-NATO and his party, the UPR, is often describe as anti-American, even if he himself refuses this appellation. Not known enough by the french population, he doesn’t figure among the favorites or the first round.
- Benoît Hamon
He describes himself as the “French Bernie Sanders” and would be honored to work in collaboration with Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Benoît Hamon is a proud eco-friendly socialist whose ideas are in favor of equality, tolerance and freedom. But his ideology doesn’t really resonates with the french population, afraid of the arrival of immigrants and of the threats of ISIS. He is also close to the current government, not very appreciated by french people.
- Jean Lassalle
Nobody really knows him but it doesn’t prevent him from being a candidate. Not from the left nor the right, Lassalle is a kind of ecologist who traveled all over the country in 2013 during eight months to meet the french population and listen to their problems. The same year, he voted against the law allowing gay marriage.
- Emmanuel Macron
He is the favorite of this year’s french presidential elections. A member of the former government, he left it last year to dedicate himself entirely to his campaign. Very pro-euro, the former banker for the powerful Rotschild Bank is against the Frexit and wants to keep collaborating with Angela Merkel and the European Union.
- Jacques Cheminade
The 75-year-old is a candidate for the third time but is most likely to fail in the first round of the elections. Not really famous, Jacques Cheminade’s program is focused on the economy and the fight against the economical crisis facing the European population. He by the way predicted the arrival of this crisis 13 years before it actually happened, in 1995.
Now it’s up to the french population to choose their future president. We will know on Apr. 23 who will be the two winners of the first round.
