According to an Ipsos-Sopra Steria poll, carried out for Le Parisien-Aujourd’hui en France and Franceinfo, published on Saturday February 5, 51% of French people believe that it is time for Emmanuel Macron to declare himself a presidential candidate, while that 61% want him to accept a debate before the first round. On the ground, it is clear that the candidacy of the outgoing president is hardly a shadow of a doubt.
“But he has already started his campaign”, sums up a lady met by CNEWS on a Parisian market.
And, like her, many French people encountered in these aisles think that it is high time for the chief walker to declare himself a candidate, with just a few nuances.
“I think it’s very hypocritical for the French”, judges a customer of a stall who does not understand why Emmanuel Macron still does not show up. “I think he should say he’s a candidate and bang his fist on the table,” adds a trader, still at the microphone of CNEWS. “The campaign is not really launched as long as all the candidates are not candidates”, estimates still another man met on this market.
Still, other French people do not see any problem with Emmanuel Macron taking his time a little longer. “It can still wait, especially since he has important things to settle at the moment,” said one of them. “He has no reason to rush, the others do it for him”, analyzes yet another.
An outgoing president on schedule
Sixty-two days before the first round, Emmanuel Macron is not the first outgoing president to take his time. Asked by CNEWS, the political scientist Luc Gras thus recalls that “the presidents who represent themselves under the fifth Republic declare themselves, approximately, between two and one month before the election. So we are on schedule.”
More concretely, for Emmanuel Macron to officially declare himself a candidate, the entourage of the Head of State explains that several conditions must be met. Among them: that the acute phase of the epidemic is behind us, that the geopolitical situation on the Ukrainian file is stabilized, and, finally, that the French seize the presidential election.
In this context, Emmanuel Macron could declare himself for re-election within about two weeks, around February 15. The fact remains that whatever the date chosen, one thing is certain: the president wants to remain in control of the clocks until the end.