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A2 UP FRONT
Monday 8 May 2017
Analysis: Despite Le Pen’s loss, European populism lives on

By JOHN LEICESTER the White House has been candidate Jean-Marie Le climb from around 6 per- ting electoral newcomer
Associated Press kept offshore, quarantined, Pen, her father, at the same cent in the 1960s to more Macron in the presidential
PARIS (AP) — It’s a triple- away from the heart of stage in 2002. than 13 percent this de- Elysee Palace. Populist poli-
whammy. The last six mainland Europe. In the Netherlands, despite cade, according to a 2016 tics sold like hot baguettes.
months have seen three A larger slice than ever
European elections and of the French electorate,
three defeats for far-right fraught with anxiety and
populists. The tempting anger about globalization’s
conclusion is that popu- bruising impact on jobs and
lism’s destructive ability to security, saw solace in Le
dismantle old worlds with- Pen’s promises of “French-
out having credible blue- first” protectionism, no mat-
prints for building new ones ter how half-baked. She
has been contained for pledged to defend them
now — at least in western from migrants taking jobs
Europe. and benefits, murderous
In Austria, in the Nether- Islamic extremists, dog-eat-
lands and now in France, dog economic competi-
not only were there no tion, the EU’s open borders
cigars for Norbert Hofer, and open trade — in short,
Geert Wilders and Marine from the Big Bad World in
Le Pen, but they got, at general.
best, no closer than sniff- Even the more optimistic
ing distance to power. Macron tapped into the
Hofer came nearest, with populist zeitgeist.
46 percent of the vote for Unknown to voters before
Austria’s presidency in De- his turbulent 2014-16 tenure
cember. Le Pen lost by a as economy minister, the
projected 30 percentage Supporters of French independent centrist presidential candidate, Emmanuel Macron kiss as they 39-year-old positioned him-
points in Sunday’s presi- celebrate outside the Louvre museum in Paris, France, Sunday, May 7, 2017. Polling agencies self — like Donald Trump
dential runoff to Emmanuel have projected that centrist Emmanuel Macron will be France’s next president, putting a 39-year- and Le Pen — as a politi-
Macron, an economically old political novice at the helm of one of the world’s biggest economies and slowing a global cal outsider, an agent of
populist wave. The agencies projected that Macron defeated far-right leader Marine Le Pen 65
liberal, socially responsive percent to 35 percent on Sunday. change. Macron’s startup-
middle-way pro-European. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus) style campaign caught fire.
European moderates and He, too, promised — al-
the political establishment But for how long? campaigning on a mea- study from the Harvard though not in such earthy
can release the breath Despite the electoral set- ger one-page platform, Kennedy School . Left-wing terms — to drain the swamp
they’ve been holding. The backs, populism is down Wilders’ anti-Islam, anti- populist parties fared even of French politics, to sweep
populist contagion that but not out, still growing in immigration and anti-EU better, from few votes and out nepotism, replace ca-
convinced 52 percent of strength and influence. Freedom Party gained five almost no seats in the 1960s reer politicians with ordinary
Britons last year that their Not only did Le Pen make seats, becoming the sec- to low double-digit per- folk and slash by a third the
future would be brighter France’s presidential runoff ond-largest party in parlia- centages this decade. number of lawmakers and
outside the European Union for the first time, improving ment, in March elections. France’s campaign this senators.
and made working-class on her third place in 2012, Even before these advanc- year redrew the nation’s For European moderates,
Americans believe that a she picked up many more es, right-wing European political landscape, throw- the job of putting the genie
reality TV star would cham- than the 5.5 million votes populist parties saw their ing out mainstream parties of populism back in its bot-
pion their interests from that went to extreme-right share of seats and votes from left and right and put- tle is far from done.q

Pro-EU Emmanuel Macron becomes France’s youngest president

Continued from Front Macron’s “big win” and France’s youngest-ever Francois Hollande’s gov- Despite her loss, Le Pen’s
said he looked forward to president but also one of ernment to run as an in- advancement to the run-
Many French voters had working with the French its most unlikely. Until now, dependent in his first cam- off for the first time marked
backed him reluctantly, leader. modern France had been paign. a breakthrough for the
simply to keep out Le Pen Macron has said he wants governed either by the So- His startup political move- 48-year-old and under-
and her National Front par- continued intelligence- cialists or the conservatives. ment — optimistically scored a growing accep-
ty, which has a long anti- sharing with the United Both Macron and Le Pen named “En Marche! (For- tance of her fierce anti-im-
Semitic and racist history. States and cooperation upended that right-left tra- ward)” — caught fire in just migration, France-first na-
After the most closely at the United Nations and dition. one year, harnessing vot- tionalism. She had placed
watched and unpredict- hopes to persuade Trump “France has sent an in- ers’ hunger for new faces third in the 2012 presiden-
able French presidential not to pull the U.S. out of a credible message to itself, and new ideas. tial vote.
campaign in recent mem- global accord fighting cli- to Europe and the world,” “I’m so happy, it feels so Le Pen immediately turned
ory, many voters rejected mate change. said Macron ally Francois good! I lived the election of her focus to France’s up-
the runoff choices alto- Germany’s foreign minister, Bayrou, tipped among his Donald Trump in New York, coming legislative election
gether. Pollsters projected Sigmar Gabriel, laced his possible choices for prime and now finally, after Brexit, in June, where Macron will
that French voters cast welcome for Macron with a minister. after Trump, populism has need a working majority to
blank or spoiled ballots in warning to the French, say- Unknown to voters before been beaten in France,” govern effectively. Le Pen
record numbers Sunday. ing: “If he fails, in five years his turbulent 2014-16 tenure said Pierre-Yves Colinet, a said her “historic and mas-
Congratulatory messages Mrs. Le Pen will be president as France’s pro-business joyous Macron supporter sive” score turned her party
poured in from abroad. and the European project economy minister, Macron at the Louvre victory party. into “the leading opposi-
Trump tweeted congratu- will go to the dogs.” took a giant gamble by “Today, I’m proud to be tion force against the new
lations on what he called Macron becomes not only quitting Socialist President French.” president’s plans.”q