Presidential: Mélenchon walks for the "Sixth Republic" and the second round

Europe 1 with AFP 6:20 p.m., March 18, 2022, modified at 6:20 p.m., March 18, 2022

"For the Sixth Republic", but also to force his destiny towards the second round of the presidential election, Jean-Luc Mélenchon will try to amplify his dynamic on Sunday by bringing together tens of thousands of people in a Parisian march from Bastille to République.

Images of similar, well-watched marches in 2012 and 2017, during his previous presidential campaigns, had helped bolster the tribune's candidacy.

Up in the polls

This time, Jean-Luc Mélenchon says he "feels good" about his chances of qualifying.

Voting intentions in his favor have been rising slowly but surely since January, to between 11 and 14% today, allowing him to take off on his competitors on the left and hold the argument of "effective voting", new formula for the helpful vote.

The Insoumis candidate can also boast, in some very recent studies, of placing himself in third position ahead of LR Valérie Pécresse and the far-right essayist Eric Zemmour.

By enthusiastically relaying this information, Jean-Luc Mélenchon's lieutenants nevertheless omit to mention that Marine Le Pen, in second position, also increases his average score by leaving him at a respectable distance.

"The threshold for access to the second round is between 15 and 18%, there are still three or four points to be taken from Fabien Roussel and Yannick Jadot", his communist and environmentalist competitors, estimates campaign director Manuel Bompard.

According to him, the candidate embodied one of the "two or three great visions" on the war in Ukraine, while some predicted a drop in the polls because of his non-alignment with the United States and NATO. .

Focus on "emergency measures"

But the staff of LFI knows that to overtake Marine Le Pen and have chances in a possible second round against the outgoing president, Jean-Luc Mélenchon also needs to install a match on the social.

"When Emmanuel Macron announces retirement at 65 and me at 60, the choice of the ballot paper cuts a social fight", insists the Insoumis.

His campaign focuses a lot on social emergency measures such as price freezes and wage increases, such as the Smic to 1,400 euros net (against 1,269 euros since January).

On leaflets currently being circulated, they appear at the very top of the list.

The convening of a constituent assembly for a Sixth Republic, so important in the 2017 campaign, is relegated much lower.

The constituent assembly, whose members would be elected and others drawn by lot, would write the new constitution, which would be more parliamentary and participatory than the Fifth.

Pending its completion (two years of work and their submission to a referendum), he would appoint a government and apply the other major measures of his program within the framework of the current constitution.

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"This campaign is more collective but also less clear, less identifiable than its previous ones", judges an elected communist who is nevertheless critical of the competing candidate of the PCF Fabien Roussel.

"I don't know what the angle is other than the credibility of being the only one standing firm against the right-wing offensive in the country."

Attract as many people as possible

The deputy of the North Adrien Quatennens promises: "Sunday's march will be the reaffirmation that the Sixth Republic is one of the keys to the program, which will be difficult to apply if we remain in the Fifth Republic".

The lieutenant assures that "the march will be a success because the indicators for bus reservations and leaflet orders are very good".

But he also admits that to mobilize at the polls and for the "show of force" to be effective, Jean-Luc Mélenchon needs images of the event on the news channels.

However, with the war in Ukraine, no image of the Lyon meeting on March 6, where 15,000 people had nevertheless thronged, had emerged.

Adrien Quatennens is confident and announces a technical innovation for "the home stretch", which according to him will make Jean-Luc Mélenchon essential.

The candidate's hologram meetings will be back on April 5, in a "version 2.0".