Political Odds: Trumpism Invades French Election
Think the U.S. is the only country with wacky elections? Think again.
The Donald Trump phenomenon may be uniquely American in many ways, but his brand of populist nationalism is resonating with voters all over the world. France has found a Trump-esque figure in the likes of Marine Le Pen.
On the surface, the two couldn’t be more different. Le Pen is the daughter of a far-right French nationalist, and has been ideologically consistent her entire life. She’s a former lawyer with a polished look and a soft, well-mannered demeanor.
But her policies and views are in-line with Trump’s. She’s strongly opposed to immigration and the spread of Islam, and has the support of white nationalists in France.
At the moment, Republican candidate François Fillon is Le Pen’s biggest competition. He currently holds a narrow lead in the polls and is the frontrunner in head-to-head polling. He’s a traditional conservative, advocating for smaller government and balancing the budget. If Le Pen is France’s Trump, Filon is France’s Romney.
Incumbent president François Hollande declined to run in the upcoming election, so the Socialist Party will have to select a replacement candidate some time in January. Whom they choose will probably have a significant impact on the polls since they are the only major party that leans left-of-center.
Of the many names being floated within the Socialist Party, three stand out: Emmanuel Macron, Manuel Valls, and Arnaud Montebourg. But recent numbers have suggested the French are sick and tired of Hollande and the Socialists, and are ready to move their country in a different direction.
Election day (April 23rd) is still a long way away, though, and the candidates have not even been finalized. The polls will shift as we draw closer, and we’ll keep you posted as the numbers change. In the meantime, here are the early odds to get you started.
Odds to be the next President of France
François Fillon: 1/1
Marine Le Pen: 3/1
Emmanuel Macron: 9/1
Manuel Valls: 20/1
Arnaud Montebourg: 30/1
Photo credit: “Marine Le Pen à la tribune” by Remi Noyon, CC BY-SA 2.0 [http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0], via Flickr.
Don Aguero is a man of many talents, writing about nearly anything you can put odds to. Don has been writing for SportsBettingDime since 2015, covering sports, entertainment and politics. You name it, he's covered it! He is also a steadfast West Ham fan, and has learned to embrace that suffering.
