He likes to remind citizens that he was educated at the University of Reims

Independent politician Xavier Bertrand seeks to oust President Macron

• Bertrand, 65, is emerging as a potential black horse in next year's French elections.

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• Sarkozy likened Bertrand to "the man who fixes the photocopier".

  AFP

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Independent politician Xavier Bertrand is seeking to oust French President Emmanuel Macron in the upcoming presidential elections, as some believe he may be the dark horse in this election.

When Bertrand, a small-town politician, jumped into a classic car with the words "Presidency of France" written on it, one of his aides posted a picture of him on Twitter with the caption, "On our way."

The car was intended for current President Emmanuel Macron, during a visit to the Renault car factory late last month.

When he was photographed sitting behind the wheel, some of his advisers worried he would look unattractive, but Bertrand posted his picture inside the car and didn't care.

Bertrand, 65, who previously held the posts of health minister and labor minister, has begun to emerge as a potential black horse in next year's French elections, which many experts assumed would see a tough direct competition between Macron and right-wing leader Marine Le Pen.

French journalist Anya Nussbaum said in a report published by Bloomberg News Agency that Bertrand believes he can oust Macron, the banker who took over the presidency, by presenting himself as an anti-candidate.

He taps into his working-class roots and connections to France's provinces, where anger over economic inequalities and a sense that the government favors Paris over others helped stoke the yellow vest protests that have cast a shadow over the president's third year in office.

However, in order to compete as an independent, Bertrand, as Macron had done before him, avoided running as he sought to bolster support before his potential rivals could organize.

"Bertrand's gamble is to seek the support of the right with a classic, traditional right-wing agenda", while appearing as an outsider to "extend his reach to a less affluent electorate, including left-wing voters who dislike the president," says Lille politician Remy Lefevre. .

not an outsider

Yet Bertrand is not exactly an outsider in politics, says Nussbaum, who faces stiff competition from a crowded field of the right that includes two other well-known regional presidents, Valerie Pecresse and Laurent Waakes.

Therefore, says Lefevre, winning the elections that begins on April 10th will not be easy for him, but given that French elections are usually full of surprises, it is quite possible.

Bertrand announced his candidacy for the presidency two months before the regional elections held last June, in which he won a second term in the Hauts-de-France administrative region in northern France, defeating the right-wing candidate by a landslide, and has begun to gain momentum in public opinion polls since then. now.

In a recent poll, Bertrand received 18% of the vote in the first round of the presidential election, while Macron and Le Pen each received 25%.

And if Bertrand manages to beat Le Pen in the first round, and qualify for a run-off against Macron, he could change this race and put the president on the defensive.

strong design

People who have worked with Bertrand, or seen him in action, note that he has a very strong determination.

One executive noted that 10 years ago, when Bertrand was health minister, Bertrand lobbied for stricter rules on medical devices, after it turned out that a French company had sold faulty breast implants, and did not care that he was irritating powerful economic companies.

Nussbaum, who has participated in her work in French television and the newspapers "The Wall Street Journal", "The Financial Times" and "Le Monde", indicated that Bertrand, as head of the poor administration of "Hauts de France", had failed to achieve most of the goals he set for himself, such as providing 60 A thousand job opportunities in the first year, and ensuring the arrival of all trains on time, but he was praised for his success in eliminating routine, and facilitating the arrival of patients, long before the “Corona” epidemic, to doctors to consult them on the Internet.

Bertrand is often described as compatible with centrists, yet he has many conservative views. He opposed same-sex marriage when former President Francois Hollande legalized it in 2013, and advocated lowering the age of criminal responsibility to 15, as well as setting minimum penalties for those who attack the police. It is a proposal that could be unconstitutional.

Like Le Pen, he has attacked wind turbines as an energy source, and advocates strict immigration quotas.

One adviser says there may not be much differences between Macron and Bertrand's programmes, both wanting the French to work more, retire later and have more police on the streets.

Contrasting styles

The chancellor highlights contradictory approaches, particularly the way Bertrand interacts with citizens. Bertrand, for example, says he is willing to work with trade unions that Macron has ignored, and listen to citizens' demands for greater economic justice.

"We need to reduce injustices, otherwise we will fail to reform the country," Bertrand said on the sidelines of an economic conference in Aix-en-Provence, southern France, earlier this month.

Bertrand likes to remind citizens that he was educated at the University of Reims, not one of the distinguished Parisian educational institutions from which Macron graduated.

While opponents describe Macron as a "president of the rich" after he abolished the wealth tax, critics describe Bertrand as an "insurance-oriented person" because he worked for an insurance company, and former President Nicolas Sarkozy once likened him to "the man who fixes the photocopier". .

The situation will be more difficult for Bertrand if the Republicans do not support him, but his constituency says he will run for election regardless of what decision the party makes when it holds its primaries, perhaps in the fall.

Nussbaum concluded by reporting that Bertrand says he only wants to end the "chaos" created by Macron's policies.

Asked by a journalist, on the sidelines of the last economic conference, whether he was worried about losing to the two main competitors Macron and Le Pen, Bertrand smiled, saying: “Do I look the anxious type?”

• Bertrand's gamble is that he seeks the support of the right with a classic right-wing agenda, while appearing as an outsider, to extend his reach to a less affluent electorate, including left-wing voters who dislike the president.

• Bertrand is often described as compatible with centrists, yet he has many conservative views.

• In a recent opinion poll, Bertrand received 18% of the vote in the first round of the presidential elections, while Macron and Le Pen each received 25%.

And if Bertrand manages to beat Le Pen in the first round and qualify for a run-off against Macron, he could change this race and put the president on the defensive.

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