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BLOOMBERG
Marine Le Pen’s far-right party is biggest beneficiary of French discontent over President Emmanuel Macron’s decision to push through an increase in the retirement age, according to a survey by pollster Ifop for Le Journal du Dimanche newspaper.
If legislative elections were to take place on April 2, 26% of the 1,094 adults interviewed via the Internet March 20-21 said they would support National Rally candidates. That was 5 points higher than the previous poll in November, before a series of strikes and protests against the unpopular pension overhaul.
A group of parties that back Macron would get the votes of 22% of those polled, down 5 points. Politicians from the Nupes alliance of left-wing and green parties would get 26%, up just 1 point from November despite their strong mobilization against Macron’s reform.
“The major lesson is that the National Rally is in the lead; it’s unheard of,†Ifop head Frederic Dabi told the JDD. “It has a catch-all electoral platform. There are hardly any categories any more where it’s very weak, except among senior executives, where it only reaps 13%.â€
Millions of people have joined nationwide strikes and marches since mid-January against the pension reform.