Marine Le Pen, the French far-right candidate in the presidential election in April, delivered her first campaign speech yesterday, France24 reports.
Le Pen spoke to 10,000 members of her National Rally (RN) party in the city of Orléans. She accused the centrist government of President Emmanuel Macron of being overly soft on aggressive protesters and lacking authority.
Le Pen, who according to polls is leading the race, appears to be reaping political dividends from the fallout of weeks of protests and clashes. She promised to “restore the rule of law” if she wins. “We will restore the rule of law,” the politician said.
Meanwhile, on Saturday the city saw a rally by opponents of Le Pen and her anti-immigration nationalist party, attended by thousands of people.
Protests in France
On Saturday, more than 400,000 people took to the streets of major French cities to protest against the rising cost of living. After groups of masked protesters broke away from the main marches, clashes erupted.
Police detained more than 1,300 people, and Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez placed a significant share of the responsibility for the violence on “far-left” extremists.
Nationwide protests a week earlier also escalated into unrest, against the backdrop of four weeks of student demonstrations triggered by the poor state of French educational institutions.
Trade unions and participants in the “yellow vests” movement have vowed to continue street protests in the coming weeks, pointing to a period of heightened tension ahead of the election.
Le Pen Promises to Cut Household Energy Bills and Taxes
If Le Pen wins the two-round presidential election in April and May, she promises to reduce the cost of living by capping energy bills, cutting taxes and reducing France’s contribution to the European Union.
She is also critical of NATO and of the support France provides to Ukraine to repel the Russian invasion.
Whoever wins the presidential election will have limited scope for additional spending, as France’s public debt and budget deficit already exceed EU limits. Macron’s government is currently making significant efforts to secure the passage of a budget that предусматривает spending cuts.
- A few days ago, Jordan Bardella was re-elected as leader of the National Rally. If Le Pen wins the presidential election, she has promised to nominate Bardella for the post of head of government.