Francois Hollande: France’s Choice

The French have elected their next president last Sunday, May 6, in a runoff that brought Nicolas Sarkozy, the current president, head to head with Francois Hollande, the Socalist Party’s candidate.  Hollande, who won 51.6 percent of the votes with an 80 percent turnout, will take over power from Sarkozy on May 15. Hollande is the first socialist president to be elected since Francois Mitterand who stayed in post from 1981 to 1995, which means that France hasn’t had a left-wing leader in 17 years. Sarkozy on the other hand, is the first French president since 1981 not to win a second term, Valerie Giscard D’Estaing president from 1974 to 1981 had failed to win a second mandate. The elections come at a crucial time for France, given the country is facing one of its worst economic times. The unemployment rates are at more than 10 percent, public spending is 56 percent of GDP, public debt will hit 90 percent of GDP this year. The country also needs to raise180 billion euros on the bond markets. In light of these circumstances, for the past year the French have been disappointed with Sarkozy’s promises and his popularity has taken a deep plunge. As Paul Moreira, a French journalist and documentary filmmaker tells Egypt Today, this has been very much reflected in the elections.  “The elections have been, for a big part, a referendum [against] Sarkozy, […] French people have had enough of Sarkozy, due to his changing policies and his massive lies," he explains. "He has been very quickly perceived as a man who doesn’t respect his promises.” Moreira adds that this violent rejection towards a president has never been seen in the history of the Fifth Republic, calling Sarkozy “a narcissist monster preoccupied with his personal ascension”. Moreira goes on to say that  Sarkozy has played with fire by lighting the xenophobic flame putting forward the debate on national identity and thus giving the far right party, National Front, even more grounds to win. The party, led by Marine Le Pen, was able to score a voting record in the first round of the elections.  “His ministers played on a certain Islamophobia,” says Moreira, adding that Sarkozy has attacked teachers many times, the unemployed, government employees, journalists and many more. Monsieur Normal the Marshmallow While this aversion to Sarkozy has been a major factor in Hollande’s victory, the next president has something different to bring to the French politics' table — something that is not Sarkozy.  Despite being publicly referred to as Mr.Normal, The Marshmallow within his own party, and Flanby after a wobbly caramel pudding, Hollande seems to bring a more perceviedly down to earth leadership than Sarkozy — who is married to ex supermodel and singer Carla Bruni. Hollande has talked about radical change in economic policies, with proposals for a 75 percent income tax for earning above 1 million euro, the recruitment of 60,000 new teachers and a plan to renegotiate the European Union's fiscal growth pact signed by Sarkozy.  "This is the mission that is now mine: to give the European project a dimension of growth, employment, prosperity — in short, a future," said Hollande after his victory to his supporters gathered in famous Place de La Bastille in Paris.  On the other hand, Sarkozy's platform included raising up to 3 billion euros by tightening profit tax loopholes for big companies and halving the number of migrants entering the country every year because there are "too many foreigners on our territory", as quoted by the BBC. Hollande has been active in socialist politics for more than 30 years, he joined the Socialist Party in 1979 and played a junior role as an economic adviser in the Mitterrand presidency. He has also held the position of the party leader after Lionel Jospin for more than a decade  from 1997 to 2008.He has been a member of the parliament since 1988, representing a constituency in the south central region of Correze. He has four children with former partner Segolene Royal, a presidential contender in 2008's elections who was defeated by Sarkozy. Hollande has been in a relationship with French journalist Valerie Trierweiler since 2007.  “Hollande’s personality didn’t generate this kind of left wing dream like the last time a socialist president like Francois Mitterand was elected in 1981,” says Moreira, adding that everyone knows that the financial crisis has to be dealt with. He hopes for a Keynesian approach like Roosevelt’s with public investment stimulus.