French greens, Melenchon strike deal ahead of legislative election

Paris, May 2 / BNA / The French Green Party has struck a deal with the hard-left La France Insoumise (France is Unfettered), party leaders said, today, Monday, as the left seeks to form a common front against President Emmanuel Macron in the upcoming parliamentary elections.

Reuters said Macron, who won a second term last month, needs a majority in parliament to implement pro-business policies, including plans to delay the retirement age.

Early opinion polls ahead of the June 12-19 elections suggest Macron may achieve that, but opposition parties from the left and right are seeking alliances in the hope of naming the prime minister and taking control of parliament.

Adrien Quatennens – MP for La France Insoumise (LFI) – Jean-Luc Mélenchon’s hard-left movement described the deal with the Greens as a “historic moment”.

Melenchon, who came third in the presidential election and barely qualified for the run-off behind populist far-right Marine Le Pen, called on all left-leaning parties to join his movement.

The LFI-Greens agreement includes goals to lower the retirement age to 60, raise minimum wages and set prices for essential products, said Manon Aubry, an MP for the EU’s LFI, adding that agreements with other left-wing parties would follow.

“This is a people’s union around a common programme, to govern together,” she told France Info radio.

Manuel Bombard, a spokesman for the Melenchon campaign, told France Inter radio that talks with the other parties would continue.

Fabien Roussel, who ran for president on the French Communist Party ticket, said his party’s agreement to join a left-wing deal for lawmakers was imminent.

During Sunday’s May Day protests, Melenchon was also seen embracing Olivier Faure, head of France’s Socialist Party, in a sign of potential unity after talks between the LFI and the Socialists were suspended last week. Read more

One of the main differences between the two is their position on the European Union.

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