Jean-Luc Melenchon during a protest over the government's labour reforms, Place de la Republique, Paris, September 23, 2017. Lafargue Raphael/Press Association. All rights reserved.The most remarkable outcomes of the 2017 presidential and legislative elections are the unexpected victory of Emmanuel Macron, a young untested politician, who is challenging the traditional left-right cleavage as well as the sudden collapse of the Parti socialiste (PS) whose future as a major political force is now in doubt.
But the rise of Jean-Luc Mélenchon’s France Insoumise (Unbowed France, FI) who professes a brand of ‘left-wing populism’ is indeed another major development in French politics. Mélenchon’s populism arguably kept Le Pen’s populism at bay by framing the terms of the debate along socio-economic lines. He consequently managed to neutralise Le Pen’s ethnocentric politics. Mélenchon’s populism arguably kept Le Pen’s populism at bay by framing the terms of the debate along socio-economic lines.
From traditional left-wing politics to ‘left-wing populism’: epistemological break?
In February 2016, Jean-Luc Mélenchon – who left the PS in 2008 – ‘proposed his candidacy’ to the nation on TF1, the main private channel in France. His ambition was to run a campaign ‘above political parties.’ In 2012, as presidential candidate for the Front de gauche (FDG), Mélenchon received the support of several left-wing parties and was clearly identified as a leftist candidate[1].
