It sums ups the sorry state of the Socialist party in France that they can’t even elect a new leader. After yesterday’s vote by members, the two contenders are this morning both claiming victory.
To be frank, whether it is the pretender Nicolas Mayer-Rossignol, or the incumbent Olivier Faure, who emerges victorious is immaterial; the decline of the Socialists will continue, as I’ve been documenting on Coffee House for a number of years.
Put simply, Le Pen won the vote of men and women for whom identity still matters
In 2006 the Socialists boasted a membership of 280,000, a figure that today stands at 41,000. Last week the party’s activists spurned the opportunity to initiate real change by eliminating Hélène Geoffroy in the first round of voting.
A former teacher who was brought up in Guadeloupe, Geoffroy is a rarity among Socialist politicians in that she recognises why the party has been in freefall for the last decade.
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