Far-right candidate rode a wave of strong anti-European Union and anti-globalization sentiment into a spot on the ballot for the second round of the French presidential election.
By: Jeff Milgram
Far-right candidate Jean-Marie Le Pen rode a wave of strong anti-European Union and anti-globalization sentiment into a spot on the ballot for the second round of the French presidential election Sunday, a panel of experts on the French political system said Thursday at Princeton University.
"I have to confess I was very surprised by the results," said Pascale Richie, chief Washington correspondent for the French newspaper Liberation. "In France, nobody saw that coming, not the media, not the politicians, not the pundits."
He said Mr. Le Pen could win even if he loses the presidential election because the general election for the French parliament will be held in June and the National Front could do well.
The wild cards are the twin issues of globalization of the economy and the European Union, which even regulates the way French farmers make cheese and has ordered each member to use the euro as its currency.
"In France, it’s not so ridiculous to say the EU runs France," said Nicolas Jabko, a member of the Fondation Nationale des Science Politiques in France and the Center of International Studies at Princeton.
Mr. Le Pen, 73, head of the National Front Party, shocked France two weeks ago when he captured 17 percent of the vote to come in second, knocking Socialist Prime Minister Lionel Jospin out of the race. Mr. Le Pen will face French President Jacques Chirac in a run-off election.
Politics Professor Ezra Suleiman, the moderator of the panel discussion, said Mr. Le Pen’s showing tarnished France’s image. "Its image was not so great, especially in the United States. Now it’s in the dumps," Dr. Suleiman said.
And he said the turn to the right is not just a French problem. "It’s happening in Denmark, Holland, Belgium and Italy," Dr. Suleiman said.
He predicted Mr. Chirac will be re-elected. "I don’t feel democracy is threatened in France," Dr. Suleiman said.
Mr. Le Pen has a long history of anti-Semitism, but according to Dr. Jabko, he has toned this down, campaigning on a staunchly anti-immigrant, anti-crime platform. He has even come out in support of Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, Dr. Jabko said.
He has said he would pull France out of the European Union and replace the euro with the franc as France’s national currency.
"People don’t feel secure about their jobs anymore," said Jean-Louis Turlin, a correspondent for the conservative newspaper Le Figaro. "People don’t feel secure in the streets anymore."
While none of the panelists felt threatened by Mr. Le Pen’s chances of election, Dr. Sophie Meunier of Princeton’s Center of International Studies pointed out that 48 percent of the vote went to candidates who oppose globalization.
"Jospin owed his defeat to the multiplicity of candidates on the left," Dr. Meunier said. "It was not the economy, stupid, as they say here. Under Jospin’s tenure the French economy showed the strongest growth in 10 years. … There is a strong anti-globalization streak in France."
Dr. Jabko said the mainstream candidates were silent on the issue of the European Union. "The EU has been synonymous with the Trojan horse of globalization," Dr. Jabko said.