Post by soul49 on Apr 21, 2017 13:51:23 GMT -4
COGOLIN, France — Muslims preoccupy Jennifer Troin.
"I'm worried about my nieces having to wear the veil," said the soft-spoken 29-year-old.
This fear has helped propel the young mother to the far-right of the political spectrum ahead of key presidential elections Sunday — and into the arms of the hard-line National Front party.Troin sells children's clothes at a store in Cogolin, a town of 11,000 a few miles from the jet-set resorts of the French Riviera. In 2014, Cogolin became one of a handful of communities nationwide to elect mayors from the National Front, which is also known by the acronym FN.
Troin told NBC News that it wasn't just the FN's stance on Islam and immigration that attracted her, but also the party's populist take on the economy.
But most of all, it was the party's charismatic leader, Marine Le Pen, who captured Troin's loyalty.
"She fights for women's rights against Islam," she said. "I vote because of Marine."
Troin is part of a quiet army of female National Front supporters, who could well tip the balance of the election and give the presidency to the hard-right.
An FN victory would rewrite the continent's political playbook, given the party's pledge to take France out of the European Union. Were it to win, it would not have been an easy ride for a movement that peaked in 2002 when founder Jean Mari Le Pen — Marine Le Pen's father — reached the second and final round of the presidential election.
Polling institute Elabe recently predicted that 22 percent of women would vote for the National Front in the first round Sunday — almost 5 percent more than in 2012.
The FN's ability to motivate French women could be decisive. Traditionally, it has struggled to attract female voters amid accusations of sexism, racism and anti-Semitism.
In its early years under Jean-Marie Le Pen, the party advocated a traditional image of women, opposed abortion rights and developed a reputation for a macho, strongman culture.
Marine Le Pen changed this.
Since taking over in 2011, she has softened the party's image, steering the FN away from some of its overtly anti-Semitic and racist rhetoric in an effort to broaden its electoral base. In 2015, she expelled her father after he repeated his view that the Holocaust was a "detail of history."
Many of the National Front supporters interviewed by NBC News were reluctant to admit it, and others were concerned about being named.
"I don't talk politics here," a local woman said, having led the way into a backroom of her business in the town. The 60-year-old asked not to be named or for her business to be described because she felt that admitting her loyalty to the FN would damage her reputation.
Even the FN mayor of Cogolin, Marc Etienne Lansade, admitted his mother would never have voted for Jean-Marie Le Pen.
"He drove her crazy," he said. "Women understand Marine Le Pen, she's divorced, she has three children, she works — she's a modern woman," he added, sitting in his second-floor office in the town hall.
Still, not all women appreciate Le Pen's message. On Monday, a topless protester carrying flowers charged the candidate during a rally northern Paris.
Le Pen does not try to make out that she is a feminist. Of her 144 manifesto pledges, only one addresses women's issues. In it, she promises to defend women's rights by fighting against Islam, implementing a plan for equal pay and combating social and job insecurity.
"She's a fake feminist," said Camille Froidevaux-Metterie, a political scientist and expert on women in politics at the University of Reims.
Asked if a Le Pen win would be a victory for women, she said that though symbolically "it would not be nothing." She said it would mean France is ready for a female president but would have elected one on a non-feminist agenda.
"I'm worried about my nieces having to wear the veil," said the soft-spoken 29-year-old.
This fear has helped propel the young mother to the far-right of the political spectrum ahead of key presidential elections Sunday — and into the arms of the hard-line National Front party.Troin sells children's clothes at a store in Cogolin, a town of 11,000 a few miles from the jet-set resorts of the French Riviera. In 2014, Cogolin became one of a handful of communities nationwide to elect mayors from the National Front, which is also known by the acronym FN.
Troin told NBC News that it wasn't just the FN's stance on Islam and immigration that attracted her, but also the party's populist take on the economy.
But most of all, it was the party's charismatic leader, Marine Le Pen, who captured Troin's loyalty.
"She fights for women's rights against Islam," she said. "I vote because of Marine."
Troin is part of a quiet army of female National Front supporters, who could well tip the balance of the election and give the presidency to the hard-right.
An FN victory would rewrite the continent's political playbook, given the party's pledge to take France out of the European Union. Were it to win, it would not have been an easy ride for a movement that peaked in 2002 when founder Jean Mari Le Pen — Marine Le Pen's father — reached the second and final round of the presidential election.
Polling institute Elabe recently predicted that 22 percent of women would vote for the National Front in the first round Sunday — almost 5 percent more than in 2012.
The FN's ability to motivate French women could be decisive. Traditionally, it has struggled to attract female voters amid accusations of sexism, racism and anti-Semitism.
In its early years under Jean-Marie Le Pen, the party advocated a traditional image of women, opposed abortion rights and developed a reputation for a macho, strongman culture.
Marine Le Pen changed this.
Since taking over in 2011, she has softened the party's image, steering the FN away from some of its overtly anti-Semitic and racist rhetoric in an effort to broaden its electoral base. In 2015, she expelled her father after he repeated his view that the Holocaust was a "detail of history."
Many of the National Front supporters interviewed by NBC News were reluctant to admit it, and others were concerned about being named.
"I don't talk politics here," a local woman said, having led the way into a backroom of her business in the town. The 60-year-old asked not to be named or for her business to be described because she felt that admitting her loyalty to the FN would damage her reputation.
Even the FN mayor of Cogolin, Marc Etienne Lansade, admitted his mother would never have voted for Jean-Marie Le Pen.
"He drove her crazy," he said. "Women understand Marine Le Pen, she's divorced, she has three children, she works — she's a modern woman," he added, sitting in his second-floor office in the town hall.
Still, not all women appreciate Le Pen's message. On Monday, a topless protester carrying flowers charged the candidate during a rally northern Paris.
Le Pen does not try to make out that she is a feminist. Of her 144 manifesto pledges, only one addresses women's issues. In it, she promises to defend women's rights by fighting against Islam, implementing a plan for equal pay and combating social and job insecurity.
"She's a fake feminist," said Camille Froidevaux-Metterie, a political scientist and expert on women in politics at the University of Reims.
Asked if a Le Pen win would be a victory for women, she said that though symbolically "it would not be nothing." She said it would mean France is ready for a female president but would have elected one on a non-feminist agenda.