Footage shows Glucksmann covered in flour after winning French left-wing presidential primary

Paris: Raphael Glucksmann, leader of the Place Publique party, has been elected the centre-left candidate for France's upcoming presidential elections, securing 66% of the 120,787 votes cast in the primary, according to vote organisers. The 46-year-old socialist, who leads the centre-left Place Publique party, defeated Socialist Party leader Olivier Faure by a wide margin, with Faure garnering only 14% of the vote. The other three candidates managed to secure less than 10% each.

Glucksmann expressed his victory on X, stating that a left faithful to its values can unite, govern, and win. He positions himself as a departure from the policies of current French President Emmanuel Macron and as a contender to defeat the far-right. However, he currently polls between nine and 14%, trailing frontrunner Marine Le Pen, who leads the far-right, and hard-left contender Jean-Luc Melenchon, whose France Unbowed party refused to participate in the primary.

In August, when he announced his presidential bid, Glucksmann distanced himself from the "classical political" circles, instead emphasizing his past work abroad in post-genocide Rwanda and as an adviser to former Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili. Elected to the European Parliament in 2019, Gluckmann has focused on human rights issues and has been a strong advocate for Ukraine.

Glucksmann's campaign strategy aims to strike a more centrist tone compared to the Socialist Party while maintaining a cooperative relationship with them. However, he has ruled out any collaboration with Melenchon, who remains the top left-wing candidate. Critics argue that Glucksmann is too detached from everyday French people's realities, but he claims his perspective is rooted in human rights work in conflict zones.

During his summer campaign across France, Glucksmann proposed a left-leaning program that seeks to balance ecological transition with social progress. The first round of the French presidential election will be held on Sunday, April 18, with the second round scheduled for two weeks later, May 2.