In statements to the public broadcaster France 2, the President was responding to statements by the leader of the far-right National Group, who yesterday accused the head of state of anti-democratic behavior amid mutual attacks over the re-run of the second round of the 2017 presidential election.
Macron based his accusations on Le Pen’s comments on the Constitution of the Republic and his willingness to encourage popular consultations even if they are not included in it, the decision to prevent the presence of certain media at his campaign events and to return to the issue of the death penalty, although his Party denied such an interest on Wednesday.
This recipe for amending the constitution at will shows us the true colors of the far right, which does not respect fundamental freedoms, the independence of the press and values at the heart of our society, such as the abolition of the death penalty, he warned.
According to the President, the rules of the Republic should be respected, particularly what is stated in its Magna Carta.
For his part, Le Pen believed that Macron was distancing himself from democracy, and in that spirit offered reforms that would increase citizen participation through referendums.
Emigration, internal security and relations within the European Union are also subjects of sharp disagreements between the candidates who, on the streets and in statements to the media, try to win over the electorate in a register of almost 49 million French.
The nearly 13 million citizens who did not vote in last Sunday’s first ballot, 26 percent of those registered, and the 17 million who supported other candidates for the Elysee Palace represent a wide field of seduction by rivals on the ballot.
For now, polls are unanimous about Macron’s preference, albeit by a narrower margin than the 66 percent of the vote he garnered in the second round of 2017.
Another positive for the president is the commitment of almost all the candidates who ran in the first round to preventing the extreme right from taking power in France, including the rebellious Jean-Luc Mélenchon, who came third in the elections on Sunday conservative Valérie Pécresse, environmentalist Yannick Jadot and communist Fabien Roussel.
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