CIFE Policy Paper 53, 18 April 2017, only in English, written by Matthias Waechter, Director General, CIFE.

"The French presidential campaign of 2017 turns very much around the buzzword of renewal: Renewal of the political elites, the morals and habits of political leaders, the party system. Some of the candidates, most prominently far-left politician Jean-Luc Mélenchon, even fight for a constitutional turnover and the creation of a "Sixth Republic". Among the five leading candidates, one presents himself not only as an innovator, but also as a revolutionary: It is Emmanuel Macron with his movement "En Marche!" The campaign book by the former minister of the economy appeared under the title "Revolution" and traces the way towards a profoundly changed France beyond the cleavage of Left and Right. A closer look at Emmanuel Macron and his movement will show, however, that he is less revolutionary than he would like to appear, but joins the political tradition of the founding father of the Fifth Republic, Charles de Gaulle. The "Gaullism" of Macron concerns foremost his positioning in the political landscape of France, the structure of his movement, and the style of leadership he embraces. (...)" Read more here