Could Marine Le Pen really win the French presidency?
The far-right leader’s longstanding strategy of pushing left on economic issues appears a wise choice amid a cost-of-living crisis.
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Read the New Statesman’s latest comment, long-read features and analysis on France.
Macron could face left-winger in run-off as French voters turn focus to presidential election
If enough left-wing supporters vote tactically for Jean-Luc Mélenchon, he may be able to squeak through to the second round.
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In the long shadow of De Gaulle
As France's presidential election nears against the backdrop of war, our writer travels from the Channel to the Mediterranean.
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Europe enters a brave new world
The war in Ukraine has marked a turning point for the EU, and Emmanuel Macron is leading the way.
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Who will win the French presidential election?
Will Emmanuel Macron hold on? The latest from the New Statesman’s poll tracker.
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Éric Zemmour and the French far right’s gender gap
Zemmour’s sexism is a throwback to the pre-Marine Le Pen days of French nationalism, and it will hurt him at…
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Hoping to stave off war in Ukraine, Macron goes to Moscow
The French president is perhaps better placed than most Western leaders to talk to Vladimir Putin.
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French mayors fear to back extreme candidates for president
Collecting 500 signatures should be little more than a formality, but not for Éric Zemmour and Marine Le Pen.
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Emmanuel Macron doesn’t plan to let the right monopolise anti-immigration sentiment
In calling for stronger external borders around the Schengen Area, the French president is making a political argument.
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Nuclear power is the French election’s hot topic
Emmanuel Macron is struggling to reconcile climate action with a desire to support industry and secure France's energy supply.
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As tensions with Russia build, Emmanuel Macron highlights splits within Nato
The French president’s call for direct dialogue with Russia has highlighted disagreements on how to engage Moscow.
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Can anything save the French left?
The “Popular Primary” aims to pick a single left-wing candidate for president – whether they want it or not.
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Novak Djokovic and why the world is turning on anti-vaxxers
The tennis star has won his battle in Australia, but patience with the unvaccinated is running out.
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Emmanuel Macron’s vow to “piss off” the unvaccinated won’t convince many – but that’s not the point
The French president’s aim is to signal to the vaccinated majority that he is on their side, rather than to…
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What lies behind conspiracy theories targeting Brigitte Macron
The wife of the French president has faced false rumours that she is a transgender woman.
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French travel restrictions won’t keep Omicron out – but they will disrupt holiday plans
Travel bans have been tried before - they didn't stop the virus before and they won't do so now.
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Boris Johnson’s toxic Brexit is poisoning relations with France
The Prime Minister and French President Emmanuel Macron can't stand each other, but the real damage is from Brexit.
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Could Valérie Pécresse be France’s first female president?
The woman who styles herself as “two-thirds Merkel, one-third Thatcher” could pose a serious threat to Macron's chances of re-election.
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Dispatch: migrants in Calais are still determined to cross the Channel
The deaths of at least 27 people on the dangerous journey have left migrants in France scared but undeterred.
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Frosty French and British relations are at best childish, at worst deadly
While ministers grandstand, desperate people are preparing to make the dangerous journey across the sea
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