The latest figures for the French parliamentary elections give the Socialists and their allies 155 seats out of 577 (the same proportion as the British Conservatives in 1997: a massacre). Martine Aubry, the creator of the 35 hour week is out, so is the Communist party leader Robert Hue, and one of the leading Greens (Dominique Voynet).
To put the Aubry defeat in context, only Chirac himself, or one of the four blood contamination killers (Laurent Fabius) would be higher up my list of French politicos to revel in their misery.
Meanwhile Alain Madelin the “libéral-libertaire” slipped in by 725 votes (50.6% to 49.4%). One right wing candidate in Paris got 100% of the vote (his run-off opponent, a supporter of Chirac, pulled out and endorsed him). The score in Paris (which has a Socialist mayor) was right/centre-right 9 seats, Socialists 10, Greens 2.
The national abstention rate also hit a record with over 38%, a big jump from 32% in 1993 (the previous record for this sort of election). We haven’t quite been here before. The three tiers of central government (presidency, senate, house of representatives) are all in president Chirac’s hands. He also controls the constitutional court (as much as any president can) and the state media commission (yes I know it should be scrapped). The question is, what will that Byers-brain Chirac do with it.
Unlike a US president he could theoretically fire nukes, declare war, arrange ‘car accidents’ for terrorist sympathisers, appoint his wife the minister for shopping and retail therapy, and screw interns – all by himself – without exceeding his powers. Remember though that the last time (in the mid-1990s) he had the opportunity to purge the state media of leftist political appointees he threatened them with a pay rise. His first spell as prime minister also broke all records for budget deficit, inflation, trade deficit, social security deficit, unemployment growth and the introduction of capital gains tax. His government also gave asylum to Ayatollah Khomeni (probably not personally his fault). These ‘achievements’ were barely matched in the early 1980s by a socialist government which included four Stalinist Communist Party ministers.
Chirac’s latest political philosophy appears to be inspired by Charles Murray’s views of state welfare, the welfare underclass, prison, and a massive tax cut. Unfortunately, how this will translate next week, let alone next month, is open to speculation.
As a victory over Socialism, this is a great night. Whether the ratchet effect will actually be reversed… Not for the first time, I hope Alain Madelin knows what he’s doing.
