Baker, cleaner, climate activist… the new profiles of the candidates of the French left

The French left aspires to multiply by three or four its representation in the National Assembly. The New Popular Ecological and Social Union (NUPES) could go from the current 57 seats -out of a total of 577- of the group of progressive formations in the last legislature to a range of between 150 and more than 200, according to the polls. Although NUPES — made up of the Unruly France, the Socialist Party, the Greens and the Communists — is a fairly classic electoral alliance led by career politicians, it boasts of contributing new profiles as parliamentarians. With the possible arrival in the hemicycle of a cleaner, a baker, trade unionists or young climate activists, wants to reduce the distrust of many French people towards the political class.

One of these new media profiles is that of Rachel Keke, 48 years. Born in the Ivory Coast and mother of five children, this waitress led the longest-running labor struggle in the hospitality industry in France. After 22 months of a partial strike, the cleaners of the Ibis Batignolles hotel, in the northwest of Paris, obtained a salary increase of 250 to 500 euros and equal conditions for all workers, including subcontracted workers. That union victory at a time when it is not easy to twist the arms of the multinationals extolled his figure within the left.

“It is us, the cleaning workers, the health assistants, the nurses, who represent the essential professions. (…) The time has come for our trades to be visible and stop being invisible in the National Assembly”, assured Kéké in one of the most acclaimed speeches at the NUPES presentation ceremony, at the beginning of May.

After having been part of the “Parliament of the Popular Union”, which brought together activists and political representatives during the presidential campaign of Jean-Luc Mélenchon, Kéké is now running in a constituency in the Parisian region. With 37.2% of the votes in the first roundstarts as a favorite in the second and could leave his macronist rival Roxana Maracineanu, former Minister of Sports, without a seat.

“To influence, you need to be part of the system”

The deputies of the National Assembly are chosen in 577 constituencies and only the one with the most votes in each of them is elected. Another NUPES applicant with a unique profile, and who stars in a close duel with a Macronist adversary, is Stephane Ravacley, 52 years. This baker from Besançon (east) became known for having made a hunger strike in January of last year in order to avoid the expulsion of Laye Fodé, his apprentice employee of Guinean nationality and threatened after having served 18 years of a deportation demand for not having a residence certificate.

That week-long fast paid off and he prevented his apprentice’s expulsion. But Ravacley was not satisfied with that and founded a group of small solidarity entrepreneurs with migrants. In the autumn of last year, the “Ravacley law” was debated in Parliament, but was rejected, which he promoted together with a socialist deputy and with which he wanted to improve the situation of unaccompanied minors.

He also organized this spring the sending of an extensive humanitarian convoy to Ukraine. “The hunger strike in the face of this injustice, the wall of the administration that does not listen and the rejection of the parliamentarians, all of this made me understand that to influence it is necessary to be part of the system, otherwise nothing changes,” explained this humanist baker in statements a Le Monde.

Much less media, but just as combative, are other activists who present themselves under the acronym of NUPES. It is the case of the Attac exporter, Aurélie Trouvé —one of the thriving figures of the Mélenchonist left—; of Alma Dufour, known for her successful lfight against the installation of Amazon warehouses; postman and trade unionist Youenn Le Flao; or the teacher and militant of the yellow vests Nathalie Culell. Also noteworthy are the young people who promoted the French protests in 2019 due to the climate emergency, such as Claire Lejeune (27 years old), Marie Pochon (31 years old) and Noé Guichard (22 years old), who competes in the same constituency as Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne favorite to win that election.

Macron abandons the speech of regeneration

“In the next assembly, there may be a considerable number of deputies who are much more sensitive to the difficult living conditions of the people”, highlights the sociologist Albert Ogien, author of the book politics of activism, in statements to El Periódico. “Currently, on the French left activism has a greater weight in political activity than parties, which have a reduced number of militants”, maintains this researcher at the CNRS. According to Ogien, “in these elections there have been reversed the roles compared to 2017. Then, Macron’s party boasted of presenting numerous candidates from civil society, while now it is the left that plays this card”.

Related news

After winning the presidential elections with a movement created just a year earlier, the comfortable victory of Macronista in the legislative elections brought about the arrival of nearly a 75% of deputies who debuted in Parliament. This favored a new younger and more feminine Assembly. “But the majority of those so-called civil society deputies were businessmen and liberal professionals, they all belonged to the same higher social classes,” recalls Ogien. Among the 577 seats there was only one worker.

In addition to the little social diversity, the Macronist deputies received criticism for their “amateurism”. To the point that in these legislative elections his party has privileged outgoing representatives and local leaders or those of other parties. 85% of its candidates held elected positions before these elections. The illusion of “new policy” of Macron has vanished. And the left wants to take advantage of it.