The primary of the social democratic left is approaching. The first round will indeed take place on Friday and Saturday. Raphaël Glucksmann, Olivier Faure, Ségolène Royal, Jérôme Guedj and Emmanuel Maurel therefore once again tried to convince during a final debate on Sunday on BFMTV.
While voters have until midnight this Monday evening to register for the first round, 20 Minutes takes stock of the main declarations of the candidates for the presidential nomination.
The question of an alliance with LFI
As in previous debates, the five candidates displayed their differences on a possible alliance with La France insoumise in the legislative elections. Raphaël Glucksmann and Jérôme Guedj are resolutely opposed to it. Jean-Luc Mélenchon is a “ballast” for the left, Jérôme Guedj insisted. The latter also accused Olivier Faure, who considers it necessary to bring together the left in the Assembly, of “weakening all of us” by suggesting “that we would have possible bridges” with LFI.
Ségolène Royal, for her part, denounced the “hold-up” that Raphaël Glucksmann is leading on the PS, accusing him of having come into the primary because he “failed to create a dynamic with his political party”, and of overwhelming the formation of Jean-Luc Mélenchon to “justify the alliance with the right”. “A pure trial of intent”, lamented the Place publique candidate, affirming that he had “no intention of diluting the social-democratic family, neither in Melenchonism nor in the right”.
Glucksmann's apology
The “macronism” trial brought against Raphaël Glucksmann was reinforced by Gabriel Attal's proposal, on Saturday, to form a “grand coalition” for the presidential election, with the leader of Place publique. His supporters rushed to close the door on this offer on Sunday, keen to get rid of this cumbersome label.
The MEP, however, found himself in difficulty from the start of the debate, forced to apologize after his “inelegant remarks” against Ségolène Royal whom he accused of having done “belly dancing to Macron” in recent years, in a video broadcast on Saturday on social networks. “It’s an assault, with a sexual connotation as well,” she told him. Raphaël Glucksmann said he was “sorry”.
The high school student movement
After a “cataclysmic” start to the debate in the words of Raphaël Glucksmann, speaking only of Jean-Luc Mélenchon, the candidates focused more on the substance.
They showed their support for the demands of high school students, with Olivier Faure calling for the convening of “high school students’ general meetings” and deploring that “70% of the budgets of private schools are publicly funded”. Raphaël Glucksmann, for his part, promised a “five-year programming law” for public schools. “With me, there would be no social movement,” said Ségolène Royal. “She’s a bit of a wonder woman,” smiled Olivier Faure.
Retirements
If they agreed to oppose Elisabeth Borne's 2023 pension reform, the candidates on the other hand displayed differences on the starting age. Raphaël Glucksmann, Olivier Faure and Emmanuel Maurel defended retirement at 62. Jérôme Guedj refused to establish a legal age. According to him, a new reform must be carried out with the slogan: taking into account “drudgery, no legal age”.
Ségolène Royal, for her part, insisted on her refusal that “we continue to scare retirees. That's enough. Every year there are reforms.” According to her, this fear about pensions also explains the “decrease in the birth rate”. “As long as we have not resolved the question of tax justice, as long as we have not remitted the solidarity tax on wealth, there is no reason to attack retirees. »
The war in Ukraine
The candidates are unanimous in their continued support for Ukraine. Ségolène Royal, on the other hand, is on a different line from the others on the question of the relationship with Russia. Banking on diplomacy, she opened the door to a dialogue with Vladimir Putin. Jérôme Guedj saw this as a “naive” choice because negotiations could notably lead to losses of territory for Ukraine. “Putin is a predator who does not want to negotiate,” added Emmanuel Maurel.
Taxation
During the debate, Olivier Faure defended the Zucman tax, and Raphaël Glucksmann the taxation of mega inheritances, super profits and the highest assets. Ségolène Royal has made it known that her fight will be “the fight against tax fraud”. “In this area, artificial intelligence will perhaps be very useful in bringing in funds,” according to her.
Immigration
On immigration, the five candidates agreed on the regularization of undocumented workers. “I regularize those who work,” announced Ségolène Royal. For Raphaël Glucksmann, “zero immigration means the collapse of the French economy. »
Our articles on the 2027 Presidential election
Jérôme Guedj, for his part, recognized a “sometimes iconoclastic position on the left”. He actually wants to “plan immigration”, advocating for this “a planning law debated in Parliament on the integration capacities and the immigration that we can organize”. In particular, he wishes to establish a “work preference rather than national preference”, an allusion to the position defended by the National Rally.
