This May 30 is the start of the official campaign for the legislative elections. In 2017 there was almost 48% participation in the first round, but in 2022 is the brand new left alliance a game-changer? At the Velpeau market in Tours on May 29, there was debate between passers-by and activists from Nupes, the New Popular Ecological and Social Union.
La Nupes, “no thank you!” or “yes of course”?
“Hello! The alliance of left and environmentalists”, launches Valentin, 26, holding out his leaflet on the market. Opposite, Josiane is circumspect: “If it’s Mélenchon behind, no thank you!” A long-time left-wing voter, She’s been cold for several years by the leader of La France Insoumise: “We can’t do what Mr. Mélenchon promises”assures this retiree, and the left alliance will not make her change her mind. “I am not campaigning for Mr. Mélenchon but for the program”tries Valentin. “It’s a union, there are several political sensitivities.”
The argument convinces Odette, another passerby. “I am disappointed with the result of the presidential elections.” The left alliance gives him hope and “the desire to vote, yes of course!” For Chantal, on the other hand, it is more mixed: “The Nupes is better than nothing, but there are still too many candidates to navigate”she sighs. “Me, I’m frankly on the left but I don’t know who to vote for.”
Cohabitation, the issue of the legislative elections
Unsurprisingly mixed opinions, but some left-wing activists still note a change in mentality. “Today there is a very strong issue for the legislative elections: it is that there is a cohabitation. We feel in people this glimmer of hope”, assures François, another Nupes activist. For him, it is also necessary to convince young people “who voted massively on the left in the presidential elections. There, the challenge is that they also mobilize.” But in the market, “We meet a little less and it’s less in their DNA to vote in the legislative elections, compared to other generations.”