Le Pen launches presidential bid as French protests continue

· Politics · France

Marine Le Pen, leader of France's far-right National Rally, launched her presidential campaign on Sunday with a speech to about 10,000 supporters in Orléans, promising a "renaissance" for France and "zero tolerance" policing, and condemning what she called Islamist ideologies. She leads polls with up to 38% six months before the vote and is seen as benefiting from social discontent. Her launch came a day after nationwide cost-of-living protests drew an estimated 410,000 people, including 110,000 in Paris, with 1,314 arrests nationwide as clashes hit several cities for a second weekend. Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez credited heavy police deployment with preventing a repeat of last week's riots. Macron has been accused by unions of curbing the right to protest with a bill making protesters pay for vandalism.

Why it matters：A far-right candidate leading the polls in a major EU power, against a backdrop of mass unrest, could reshape French politics and Europe's political balance.

Key points

  • Le Pen addressed about 10,000 supporters in Orléans and polls up to 38%.
  • Nationwide protests drew an estimated 410,000 people, with 1,314 arrests.
  • Unions accuse Macron of curbing the right to protest with a vandalism-liability bill.

Sources (original reporting)

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