As the second round of the presidential election approaches, the students of the Lycée Claude-Bernard, in Paris, have questions about certain events around the first round and the debate between the two rounds, scheduled for next Wednesday between the two finalists, Emmanuel Macron and Marine Le Pen.
Two journalists from franceinfo will answer questions from high school students, Victoria Koussapolitical journalist and Célyne Baÿt-Darcourtmedia journalist.
Were voice messages sent before the first round to invite people to vote for a candidate? Is it legal?
Lola saw on Instagram “that a candidate has sent voice messages inviting them to vote for them“a few days before the first round. “It’s true”replies Victoria Koussa “and there is even”two candidates who sent“. First there is Valérie Pécresse, the candidate Les Républicains, “that we haven’t talked about much“, explains Victoria Koussa, “because it complied with the rules of the CNIL, the commission responsible for ensuring compliance with the rules before the election.“
Then there is Eric Zemmour who is “accused of having forgotten the obligatory mention before his message, which allows the recipient to oppose this political canvassing by telephone” summarizes the political journalist of franceinfo. In addition, the team of Eric Zemmour is also targeted by a criminal investigation, opened on Tuesday, April 12 by the Paris prosecutor’s office for another case related to canvassing by SMS of the party Reconquest! targeting French people of the Jewish faith.
Did a Russian media give Marine Le Pen the lead in the first round?
In the first round of the presidential election, according to the official results of the Ministry of the Interior, Emmanuel Macron came out on top with 27.84% of the vote, followed by Marine Le Pen with 23.15%. However, Maxence saw an article on social networks “who says that Marine le pen was given the winner by the Russian media“.
“It’s true, replies Victoria Koussa, it was the Russian agency Ria Novosti which gave this information shortly after 8 p.m. ” What explains this result is that the Russian media used figures from the French Ministry of the Interior, but the problemsays Victoria Koussa, it’s that there were only half of the ballots countedIn other words, these were not the final figures and on these ballots, the candidate of the National Rally did indeed come out on top.
Except that that was before the counting in the big cities, where there, Emmanuel Macron passed in front of Marine le Pen to end up leaving her behind by three points.
Were 200 voters removed from their polling stations without reason?
On the day of the first round, under the keyword “#fraud”, we saw numerous messages denouncing in particular “thousands of expelled voters”. Romain wonders if200 voters were really removed without reason from their polling station on Sunday” ?
“Yes, replies Victoria Koussa, 200 voters in Marseille, but there were hundreds of others elsewhere.“The political journalist from franceinfo specifies that”it’s not linked to the election itself, it’s rather administrative, because before each ballot, the electoral lists are scrutinized and if you don’t give any sign of life, in your municipality, we can remove your name“.
Normally the elector concerned is notified by mail, but there may be failures, especially if your address has changed. The True of False Cell of franceinfo had checked, the day after the second round, the “irregularities” denounced on social networks.
Is the debate between rounds compulsory?
The students of the Lycée Claude-Bernard, in Paris, also had questions about the traditional debate between the two finalists in the presidential election before the second round. This year it will be Emmanuel Macron facing Marine Le Pen, Wednesday April 20, at 8 p.m. Pauline wonders if this debate between the two rounds is “mandatory“?
“No, it’s not compulsory, but it’s a tradition, a must, in a way for the two candidates a few days before the second round.” replies Victoria Koussa, and this “since the first debate round, in 1974.”
The journalist from the political service of franceinfo nevertheless recalls that a candidate has already refused to take part in the exercise, “it was Jacques Chirac, in 2002, against Jean-Marie Le Pen of the National Front. He said in a speech that he strongly opposed it because he did not want to trivialize intolerance and hatred.“
Is the debate between the two rounds decisive for the candidates?
Still about the debate before the second round, Pauline wonders if this face to face between the finalists of the presidential election, “can be decisive“?
For Victoria Koussa, “yes we can say that, because voters often make up their minds at the last moment and this debate allows each candidate to adjust his cursor, to press on such and such a point of his program or to attack the other.“
Victoria Koussa also recalls that five years ago, “Marine Le Pen missed this duel against Emmanuel Macron and lost the election, which is also why she is withdrawing for two days in the countryside to prepare intensively and not to miss the march on Wednesday evening. next.”
The journalist from the political service of franceinfo compares this debate to a match with often a winner and a loser, but “sometimes there can be a draw, which makes the second round even more uncertain.“
Do the candidates really choose the journalists who will animate the debate between the two rounds?
Pauline wonders how the journalists are chosen to animate this debate between the two rounds and it is Célyne Baÿt-Darcourt, media journalist for franceinfo who answers her.
She explains that at each election, it is the television channels, in this case TF1 and France 2, which propose names and which organize this debate between the two rounds. Célyne Baÿt-Darcourt specifies that it is necessary “respect gender parity, and that the people selected are journalists.” The channels propose, but the candidates then have a right of inspection, they can accept or refuse the names which are proposed to them. Célyne Baÿt-Darcourt explains that the candidates “have to agree and it’s never easy, because every time candidates hit a journalist.“
For example, in 2017, Marine Le Pen did not want Anne-Claire Coudray to lead this debate. The franceinfo media journalist also recalls that in 1981, “François Mitterrand had enacted a list of 21 rules to be respected for this debate between the two rounds, he imposed in particular journalists and Valéry Giscard d’Estaing, who was his opponent, had accepted all these conditions“.
This year, Marine Le Pen and Emmanuel Macron said they did not want Anne-Sophie Lapix, presenter of the 20 hours of France 2, to animate the debate between the two rounds next Wednesday. It will finally be Gilles Bouleau for TF1 and Léa Salamé for France 2, who will lead this debate on Wednesday April 20, at 8 p.m. and for a little over two hours.