Europeupdated 1h ago2 min read
Archive photo · 26 May 2022Marine Le Pen Launches Presidential Campaign In Orléans, Promises Rule Of Law And Zero Tolerance
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Le Pen launched her presidential campaign in Orléans. She pledged to restore the rule of law in France.
17 outlets told this the same way.
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Le Pen’s “Renaissance”
Marine Le Pen told supporters in Orléans that “We are going to restore the rule of law,” as she launched her presidential campaign amid protests and social and economic discontent in France. Marine Le Pen framed her bid as a “renaissance” and told the crowd, “This is a story to be written, a destiny to be fulfilled,” while organisers said 8,500 supporters had gathered in a venue transformed into a fort for the event.
Marine Le Pen promised “zero tolerance” and said restoring security was the state’s first duty as France faced “one of its most turbulent periods in recent years,” according to the Reuters account carried by LatinUS. Marine Le Pen also invoked Joan of Arc in Orléans, the birthplace of the 15th-century heroine revered by nationalists as a symbol of patriotism and sovereignty, as she positioned her campaign against what she described as growing economic, social, and security crises.
Violence, policing, and rivals
Jordan Bardella promised that “if they come to power next spring, the French government will use all legal means to restore order and protect decent people,” as the National Rally congress proceeded under heavy security in Orléans. Jean-Luc Mélenchon remained a central target in Le Pen’s campaign messaging, as Le Pen accused La France Insoumise of desiring “tolerance and violence” and of maintaining ties “with an armed wing of agitators,” according to ABC.
Jean-Yves Camus said the disturbances were “advantageous for Le Pen” because “many French people only see the images of destruction on television,” and he argued that viewers “do not see the protests as such.” Jordan Bardella also accused La France Insoumise of Jean-Luc Mélenchon of having the “moral responsibility” for the wave of violence, saying “His party has spent years discrediting the Police and inciting confrontation,” as El Mundo reported.
UEJF disruption and stakes
UEJF militants disrupted Le Pen’s rally in Orléans by unfurling a banner recalling “antisemitic comments of Bardella,” and security agents escorted them out after people in the audience shouted and hit them, according to ABC. The Union of Jewish Students of France (UEJF) later announced a complaint for violence in assembly, while Jordan Bardella accused “ultra-left militants, who claim to be UEJF members,” of being “arrived with Mediapart to assault and attack militants,” as La Presse described.
Marine Le Pen’s campaign also unfolded with police deployment, as authorities deployed 3,000 police to control an anti-fascist demonstration on Saturday in Orléans, which passed with few incidents. Marine Le Pen’s program, as reported by Europa Press, included a promise to “reestablishing the rule of law” and “zero tolerance” on immigration, alongside a pledge of “automatic and permanent deportation,” with the elections scheduled for April and May of next year.