The Guardian view on France after Macron: local elections offer clues to seeing off the far-right threat | Editorial

2026-03-23 - 19:00

Victories in Paris and Marseille suggest a united left can reclaim centre-ground voters. But the end of Macronism is leaving a complex political landscape In 2002, divisions on the left allowed Jean-Marie Le Pen to shock France by reaching the run-off in that year’s presidential election. Lionel Jospin, the defeated Socialist candidate in the poll, would subsequently recall the humiliation to remind progressives of the need for unity in the face of the far-right threat. Mr Jospin’s death, announced on Monday, has overshadowed the weekend’s local election results. But as they are pored over for clues to a seismic presidential contest that Le Pen’s daughter, Marine, believes she can win next year, it is clear that alliances – or their absence – will shape that race too. In Paris and Marseille, Socialist candidates won handsome mayoral victories at the head of a broad left grouping that included Greens and Communists, but not Jean-Luc Mélenchon’s radical left France Unbowed party (LFI). Emmanuel Grégoire’s second-round victory in Paris was particularly impressive, given that it was achieved against both a united right opposition and the LFI candidate, who refused to stand down. Outside the biggest conurbations, however, progressive outcomes were less stellar. Traditional strongholds such as the city of Clermont Ferrand, where Socialists and Greens made local alliances with Mr Mélenchon’s party, were lost to a mildly resurgent centre-right. Do you have an opinion on the issues raised in this article? If you would like to submit a response of up to 300 words by email to be considered for publication in our letters section, please click here. Continue reading...