The pandemic factor in the rivalry between E. Macron and M. Le Pen in the Presidential Elections in France in 2022

Abstract

The ongoing French president E. Macron and the leader of the right-wing leader of the right-wing National Union Party M. Le Pen are the main candidates for the upcoming French presidential election in 2022, especially in the case of a second round of voting. The purpose of this article is to estimate the influence of pandemic factor in the rivalry between the two candidates and a possible turnout of the upcoming election. The article focuses especially on two aspects of the two politicians’ rivalry: Macron’s controversial actions against the pandemic, which have had a negative impact on his rating and Le Pen’s attempts to use the pandemic to broaden her electorate and increase her chances for the election.To achieve the goals, statistical methods, work with sociological surveys, as well as a comparative analysis of the views of two politicians on specific issues were used. It was concluded that some of E. Macron’s decisions to combat the pandemic did have a negative, but not decisive impact on his rating. M. Le Pen, on the contrary, having adapted some of the most important points of her program during the coronavirus period, did not offer qualitatively new ideas to combat the pandemic, and experts continue to determine her as a right-wing populist politician with contradictory statements. It attracts new followers, however, if M. Le Pen enters the second round against E. Macron, the scenario of the 2017 elections is likely to repeat.