Emmanuel Macron caused a political earthquake in the French political scene, reports the British network BBC, analyzing the main reasons for his victory in the French presidential elections.
A year ago, he was a member of the government of one of the least popular French presidents in history. Today, at the age of 39, he won the French presidential election, defeating first the ruling center-left, the center-right and now the far right.
He was lucky
Undoubtedly, according to the BBC and the Athens News Agency, Macron achieved his victory partly thanks to luck. A scandal has ousted François Fillon, the center-right candidate who initially took the lead. And the Socialist candidate Benoit Amon, from the left wing of the Socialist Party, was hit as traditional voters turned elsewhere. "He was very lucky because he found himself in a completely unexpected situation," said Marc-Olivier Padis of the Terra Nova Institute in Paris.
He was a demon
But it was not all a matter of luck. Macron could claim the anointing of the Socialist candidate, but realized after years in power and low ratings that the party's popularity would be slim.
"He could have predicted that there was an opportunity when no one else could do it," Pandis said. Instead, he looked at the political movements that sprang up elsewhere in Europe - the Podemos in Spain, the Five Stars in Italy - and saw that there was no corresponding political force in France that could change the game. In April 2016, he founded the En Marche movement! (Forward!) And four months later left the government of François Hollande.
He tried something new in France
Having founded En Marche, he followed the example of Barack Obama's 2008 election campaign, explains journalist Emily Sulthais. The first big project was the Grande Marche, where he mobilized the energetic but inexperienced volunteers of the movement.
"The team used algorithms from the company they worked with - which, incidentally, volunteered for the Obama campaign in 2008 - to identify areas and neighborhoods that were most representative of France," Sulthais said. "They sent people to knock on the doors of 300.000 homes." Volunteers did not distribute leaflets - they conducted 25.000 detailed, 15-minute interviews with voters across the country. This information was then entered into a large database that helped shape the campaign's priorities and policies.
He had a positive message
Macron's political figure seems to be characterized by contradictions. The "newcomer", who was the bodyguard of President Hollande and then Minister of Economy. The former investment banker who became the leader of an ordinary citizens' movement. The centrist with a radical program to cut the public sector.
He offered the perfect arguments to his opponent Marin Le Pen, who stated that Macron was the candidate of the elite, and not the rookie who claimed to be.
However, he managed to repel attempts to label him a second François Hollande, creating a profile that resonated with people who were desperately looking for something new. "There is a climate of pessimism in France - too pessimistic, on the one hand - and that comes with a very optimistic, positive message," said Marc-Olivier Padis. "He is young, full of energy and he does not explain what he will do for France, but how people will have opportunities. He is the only one who had this message ".
He was an opponent of Marin Lepen
Against Macron's most optimistic tone, Le Pen's message was negative - against immigration, the EU and the system. Macron's rallies took place in well-lit places where pop music could be heard, says Emily Sultheis, while Marine Le Pen rallies were attended by people throwing bottles and flares, there was a strong police presence and an undercurrent of "anger".
But many were worried about the prospect of a potentially destabilizing and divisive far-right presidency and saw Macron as the last obstacle in Lepen's way. Marin Le Pen may have had a very effective campaign, but her polls have been declining for months. In last year's polls he had a big lead and in just two weeks he was defeated twice by Emanuel Macron.
Source: Newsbeast