Frankreich: Kann Marine Le Pen wirklich Frankreich regieren?
Die rechtsnationale Kandidatin gibt sich beim Wahlkampfauftakt siegessicher. Doch um Präsidentin zu werden, braucht sie Stimmen jenseits ihrer Anhängerschaft. Das führt zu Widersprüchen.
In Orléans, jubilation erupted as Marine Le Pen stepped onto the stage as the candidate of the nationalist Rassemblement National (RN) party. Thousands of supporters of the right-wing party celebrated their candidate as if the election were already won. "Marine Présidente!" they chanted and waved French flags. Le Pen has appeared three times before, twice reaching the runoff.
She now aims to secure victory in the fourth attempt. "I believe in the people, in France and the future!" she shouted to the crowd. To win, she must convince supporters beyond her base. Her message seeks to instill a sense of security among her voters, both through stricter state control of street unrest in France and tighter checks on potentially porous borders.
French citizens should come first in this narrative, and France itself gain in significance. "I wish that tomorrow the world can again say: 'That is beautiful, that is French'," she said. Orléans was chosen deliberately as a venue: here, Joan of Arc liberated the city and became a national hero, a symbol the RN likes to exploit.
Written by urgent.news from Handelsblatt's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
