Macron, 44, hopes to be the first French president to be re-elected in 20 years next month, but recently fell two to three points in opinion polls as the gap between him and far-right candidate Marine Le Pen narrows. . While remaining the favorite, the next 10 days of the election campaign are considered full and dangerous amid anger over the cost of living, frustration at the level of the election debate and politics in general. “I love racing, but let’s be clear – I can not do much!” Macron recently said on television, explaining that instead he was at international summits and engaged in diplomacy for Ukraine. “No one would understand if I was not there to protect the French.” Macron, who came to power in 2017 promising to transform France with a new policy brand that was neither left nor right, is around 27% in the first round, followed by Le Pen with about 17%. Le Pen is gaining ground after the tough campaign for the cost of living crisis in France. However, if Macron faces Le Pen in the second round on April 24, the result is expected to be much closer than when he won five years ago with 66%, with a poll this week showing Macron at 53%. against 47% of Le Pen. A third candidate, the hard-line leftist Jean-Luc Mélenchon, is also steadily rising and the abstention could reach 30%. Of those who say they will vote, four in 10 are still unsure of who – increasing the unpredictability to a greater degree. Most French voters trust Macron to lead the war in Ukraine, which initially seemed to be consolidating his position, and in campaigns he would say regularly that he was going to talk to a world leader on the phone shortly afterwards. However, his presidential opponents, right and left, accuse him of bypassing the domestic debate. When Macron rolled up his sleeves and went on his first walk to meet the public in Burgundy this week, he encountered complaints about fuel prices, the cost of living and the shouts of “We tax all year round!” He said France had spent 20 billion euros (17 17 billion) in meters to help those struggling and that “France has done more than its neighbors”. Macron’s challenge in the coming days is to wrap up the excitement of his campaign platform. Polls show that the details of the manifesto that have remained in the minds of voters are its measures to the right – raising the retirement age to 65 and requiring the unemployed to take 15 to 20 hours of work or training per week. Macron’s support for the center-left – which was crucial to his election in 2017 – has declined, while his support for the center-right has increased. But after promising innovation and fresh ideas in the last presidential election, a recent Elabe poll found that, this time, less than one in five people believed Macron’s program was innovative. Analysts say Macron – whose first labor and tax reforms dubbed him “president of the rich” – must show that he listens to people on the ground and their concerns. In a recent telephone interview with local radio, a woman working in the health service told Macron that she felt “she was not there for us.” Then, in a behind-the-scenes video of his campaign, he lamented that he felt that way, saying he had heard the same comment “in many places.” Opposition leaders, including Le Pen, Melanson and far-right television expert Éric Zemmour, attacked Macron over a Senate report that French ministries had more than doubled spending on international consulting firms, including McCain in 2018. The Macron government has been accused of paying millions for advice on what has been criticized as the slow release of Covid vaccines. Green Party candidate Yannick Jadot called it inappropriate to pay private consultants. Macron said all contracts respect the rules. Stuart Chaw, a sociologist and consultant on the Viavoice poll, said Macron’s current poll remained higher than his first-round score of five years ago, at 24%. Chau said Macron faced a challenge: “The international crisis has allowed him to rely on his presidency and legitimacy on the world stage. But in the narrow run of the campaign, it still has to create a result of “desirability” among voters. They must both say “I am the right person for the current international context” and at the same time evoke some positive sentiment from voters, with proposals that are thought to improve people’s lives. “This double standard is not easy.”
