by fnfeurope

Local Elections in France: A Defeat for Macrons La République en Marche

Op-ed by Alexandre Robinet-Borgomano

Germany and France are demonstratively moving closer together: President Macron and Chancellor Merkel have jointly presented a package for the economic recovery of Europe due to the Corona pandemic. On Monday, two days before the German EU Council Presidency, both heads of states met at the government guesthouse in Meseberg, not far from Berlin. For Emanuel Macron, the visit was also an opportunity to cast his challenging political situation at home in a different light after his political movement La République En Marche (LREM) suffered a crushing defeat in the local elections.

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by fnfeurope

Voting in Times of Coronavirus

CC: https://tinyurl.com/sucm4n7

 

In an interview with Freiheit.org, our France expert Carmen Descamps explains how the low voter turnout and losses for La République en Marche came about.

Last Sunday saw the first round of the local elections in France. The elections were to be a milestone for French President Macron and the second half of his term in office. The results on 15 and 22 March were also considered to be crucial for the future of his party La République en Marche. Until the tide turned with the sudden spread of the coronavirus in France. Our France expert Carmen Descamps analyses the situation. Continue reading →

by fnfeurope

The Threat Remains, the Fear Dwindles Slowly

Taking stock four years after the Paris terrorist attacks

 

On Friday, 13 November 2015, Islamist assassins carried out a series of attacks on popular Parisian leisure destinations: a concert hall, a football stadium during the friendly match between Germany and France and a lively nightlife district near the Place de la République. The wounds heal only slowly. Four years later, the feeling of security has improved, but the threat of terrorism is still present throughout France. Continue reading →

by fnfeurope

A Letter From… France!

 

 

European elections have always been atypical in France. Most French citizens have never really understood proportional elections and single ballots. In addition, non-EU related debates and programmes always prevailed.

This year’s European elections were no exception: lack of interest by citizens and the media, lack of knowledge about the election, lack of a European programme for most of the candidates on the electoral lists.

 

What is different in 2019 is the context: For the past six months, the yellow vests’ movement has absorbed all the attention of the media, with protesters looking for work and riots occurring each Saturday. Some thought this movement would not even last a month; others argued it was a new beginning. Both were wrong. Continue reading →

by fnfeurope

ALDE and Macron’s Renaissance List Form a Common Faction

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European Liberals and French seal their cooperation in Strasbourg

“CC BY-NC-ND © ALDE Party”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“Ca y est!” – “It’s done!”, is what many europhile liberals probably thought last weekend. After months of uncertainty about the political anchorage of the pro-European Renaissance list of French President Emmanuel Macron in the future European Parliament, the speculation should now have come to an end.

 

After first tentative cooperation attempts at the ALDE party congress in Madrid last November, European liberals and the French Renaissance list finally sealed their post-EU-election cooperation. The cooperation is based on a Memorandum of Understanding for a still nameless future faction. It is likely that the French name “Renaissance” will be retained, being in line with the ALDE election slogan “Renew Europe”.

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