The first round of the presidential election will take place in less than three months. Until then, the media high mass will be in full swing and the headliners will set in motion the power of their parties to win. Around them already gravitate other declared candidates, to whom the Elysée seems very distant but who intend to exist in this campaign.
They are often described as “small” candidates, without the qualification being intended to be contemptuous. A term that some accept, but not all. “There cannot be a small presidential candidate”, thunders Jean Lassalle, from Résistons, already a candidate in 2017 (1.23% of the vote). Especially if the critical milestone of 500 referrals is reached. “As long as you fulfill the rules, when you gather so many people behind you, you are not small”.
Still, for some, the ax of signatures precipitates the end of the battle (the date is set this year for March 4). They then had to stand out, to disseminate their ideas as widely as possible. Because that is the main objective of these candidates. “I absolutely do not want to become President”, conceives Martin Rocca, of Constituent 2022. “The goal is to make a media stunt, to play on the fact that I am the youngest candidate (he is 21 years old, editor’s note) , to impose our wish to renovate democracy”.
Carry your ideas yourself, to impose them in the debate
“We are not here to obtain mandates or to pursue careers, but to advance our cause and make it a major subject for the next five years”, continues Hélène Thouy, of the Animalist Party. The one who is participating in her first presidential election says that it is impossible to ignore this campaign, the most important in the French political system. Especially if we want the future winner to resume one or more of his measures when he is at the Elysée.
Jacques Cheminade, of Solidarity and Progress, who was a candidate in 1995 (0.28% of the vote), 2012 (0.25%) and 2017 (0.18%), speaks to him of “the influence of ideas”. “Even if my number of votes is ridiculous from a statistical point of view, my ideas have made their way, especially concerning nuclear power,” he rejoices. Much more than winning, the goal is therefore to carry the values that we defend. “In our fight, which is considered important for 89% of the French, the other candidates are not up to the task, they have not taken this issue into account”, continues Hélène Thouy.
“To shake up the forecasts, it’s still a bad start,” admits smiling Jean Lassalle (he is credited with 2% of voting intentions in the latest polls). “But if I manage to capture the French to plant 3 or 4 new ideas, it’s already won.”
To achieve this ambition more easily, however, collecting 500 sponsorships seems essential. The deputy for Pyrénnées-Atlantiques achieved this five years ago: “I find this system excellent. You can be a seasoned politician or a great intellectual, but not have them. It still tells a part of the truth.” A reflection to which Jacques Cheminade abounds, who has always obtained the necessary signatures. “The mayors have given them to me three times, it’s still a sign of interest in my ideas. It’s parties like us that make things happen.”
the media, the sinews of war
With each of these candidates, who are struggling to exist, one remark keeps coming back: notoriety is the nerve of this “war” for the Elysée. With, in point of tension, the question of access to the media. “It’s a vicious circle, we only see the same candidates, so the citizens think that there are only them”, describes Hélène Thouy. “We did a notoriety study, only 4% of French people know who I am, that I represent the animalist party”. Difficult, then, to hope to convince widely.
The whole challenge of participating in the presidential election is then to capture future voters, one by one, approves Martin Rocca. “If you have few resources and you don’t get in the media, it’s complicated,” sums up Jacques Cheminade.
Applying for the presidential election, which for months monopolizes the spotlight of the local and national press (when no virus invites itself) thus seems to be a good way to fill this notoriety deficit. Hoping, why not, to make these efforts bear fruit for future elections, and to definitively leave this qualification of “small” candidate.