Marine Le Pen’s electoral district, Pas-de-Calais, has seen the National Rally (RN) continually gain ground for 10 years. Six of the twelve deputies from Pas-de-Calais are now part of the far-right party, which had none in 2012. This working-class land in the north of France was previously largely won by the Socialist Party (PS) , which is why the PS insisted on presenting a large number of candidates during the anticipated legislative elections as part of the New Popular Front negotiations. However, hopes of victory are very uncertain. Illustration in the sixth constituency of Pas-de-Calais.
From our special correspondent in Pas-de-Calais,
To European elections, almost one in two voters voted for the National Rally in the village of Afringues. The Socialist Party candidate for parliamentary electionsAurore Pageaud, goes door to door and some residents greet her with a doubtful expression.
It must be said that the PS candidate arrives with some handicaps in this constituency: she, who grew up in Nantes, now lives in Paris. “ We put it like that, it is not known », recognizes Dominique, tireless socialist activist in the region. However, he adds: “ We will do everything to make it known. »
A land of the left that has become a land of RN
In the Guines market, a little further north of Afringues, the outgoing RN deputy, Christine Engrand, is on conquered territory, her party is breaking records there. On the leaflet she distributes, she reminds the Europeans of her result: 46%. She confides: “ I am calm, but I will continue to plow the land. »
Land of the left for decades, the RN wave has gradually covered Pas-de-Calais and does not seem to be weakening. In 2022, the RN passed by only a breath in the constituency: only 56 votes separated Christine Engrand from her Macronist rival, Brigitte Bourguignon. If the latter tries her luck again, her optimism wavers: “ I despair about this situation because you saw it, at the Europeans, it was shown that Mr. Bardella was doing nothing… And it doesn’t matter, everything slides like feathers ! »
Oppose the presidential majority or block it
But if Brigitte Bourguignon displays her incomprehension, Dominique, a socialist activist, has an explanation: for years, she was a figure in the local PS… before changing teams to keep her seat as deputy in 2017. He confides: “ We really believed that she was anchored on the socialist side, and then she left with Mr. Macron and we took it badly, we felt betrayed. »
Result: many socialist voters refused to vote for Bourguignon in 2022. The arrival of Aurore Pageaud, PS, therefore sounds like revenge for those who kept their hearts on the left. Like Anne Sophie and her mother Martine, other residents of Afringues: “ I said I would no longer campaign and now… If you need someone to put leaflets in the mailboxes to help you… »
A bouquet of roses from the garden and two promised votes later, Aurore Pageaud has a smile even if, she knows, the battle will be tough and, in the event of elimination, no hesitation: “ My goal is really to put a barrier against the extreme right, so I will call for a vote so that there are no votes for the extreme right. »
Dominique is already thinking about the future of his new protégé: “ In the years to come, I think we can have a socialist person in power. That’s what we hope. We work for that. »
In Pas-de-Calais, the Socialist Party hopes to recover one or two seats during these anticipated legislative elections, the start of the reconquest, hopes the rose party, which still held ten constituencies out of twelve in 2017, compared to only one in 2022.
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