The political and media hype surrounding the presidential election is starting. What position should libertarians take in this period ripe for politicization, to remain heard without betraying our political principles? --- Here we are again, the electoral circus is about to return to town! And its clamor is likely to occupy a large part of the media space in the coming year. One might think that, as libertarians, we couldn't care less. Politically, yes, but materially, this news will unfortunately monopolize discussions and, above all, open a window of opportunity for debate and politicization. So, we might as well consider our role in this election, while we still have a cool head.
The Battle of the Leaders
On both the right and the left, individual pronouncements have multiplied in recent weeks. This is particularly noticeable on the right, a party usually quite accustomed to marching in formation behind a few party leaders. But the implosion of the Republicans, torn between Macron supporters and the far right, has shattered the usual discipline, and this political family currently has at least five candidates, some of whom are pushing for a primary. Other figures, like Dominique de Villepin, also seem to want to take advantage of the political landscape's fragmentation to present themselves as saviors.
On the far right, the National Rally (RN) remains relatively untouched by this kind of debate: the only remaining question is whether or not Marine Le Pen will be convicted on appeal, in order to determine whether she or Bardela will represent the RN, amidst the usual farcical candidacies of Asselineau or Dupont-Aignan. Perhaps Éric Zemmour or Sarah Knafo will also step into the limelight.
The state is the primary weapon available to the ruling classes to consolidate their power, both through force and ideology.
UCL Alsace
On the left, on the surface, chaos reigns, with more than a dozen potential candidates already. But in reality, the matter seems already settled. While a few figures continue to advocate for a primary in the fall, the initiative is essentially dead in the water, primarily due to La France Insoumise's long-standing refusal to participate. This should surprise no one: launched in 2016, LFI has been, since its inception, merely a tool serving the ambitions of Jean-Luc Mélenchon, who created it after successively leaving the Socialist Party and the Left Party. Drawing on his experience, he built LFI as a "fluid" movement, meaning a nebulous network of activists serving an unelected, authoritarian leadership that is not subject to any democratic control, legitimized solely by occasional referendums, the most recent being the one intended to confirm him as the presidential candidate, which he will win easily, being the only option offered...
While, as libertarians, we can only bristle at LFI's authoritarian practices and the desensitization to these methods it fosters among its activists, one thing must be acknowledged: its structure is perfectly suited to the Fifth Republic, which is no less authoritarian than LFI and rewards the hyper-individualization of politics. Within this framework, LFI performs unsurprisingly well, especially since it has long since adopted a winning, albeit incredibly audacious, strategy: attempting to appeal to the left-wing electorate by proposing left-wing policies. A breathtaking level of political intelligence from which the Socialist Party (PS) still hasn't recovered.
A leader made to lead.
This has resulted in steady growth for the past 10 years. This is the strength of this hyper-personalization: the ability to maintain the momentum of previous campaigns over time, gradually centralizing the left-wing electorate. Combined with the irrepressible logic of strategic voting in the face of an ever-growing far right, the rise in LFI's scores positions it for 2027 in a hegemonic position within the electoral left: its mere refusal to hold a primary is enough to render the idea obsolete, and all serious reformist parties seem to be questioning the relevance of their candidacies.
Especially since LFI has long been working to present itself as the leading force of the left, inviting other organizations to rally behind it, a strategy that has successfully borne fruit with organizations like the POI and the Free Thought movement. The NUPES and then the NFP, which largely adopted its platform, provided LFI with an opportunity to present itself as a unifying force. For 2027, the Greens and the French Communist Party thus face a complex choice: field a candidate, risking being seen as traitors obstructing a left-wing victory, or back down, risking definitively consolidating LFI's hegemony and condemning themselves to become its satellites.
For the social and revolutionary movement, participation in representative elections represents a dead end that can only lead to division, compromise, capitulation, institutionalization, and instrumentalization, alienating the exploited from direct action.
Arnaud Jaegers
But LFI's rhetoric also targets the revolutionary left: for several months now, Mélenchon has liked to say that his movement aims to bring together activists from all backgrounds: "communists, Trotskyists, libertarians..." Everyone should unite behind this career politician and postpone disagreements. This rhetoric seems to resonate within the NPA-A, where figures like Philippe Poutou are beginning to speak out in support of Mélenchon's candidacy. However, tensions over how to deal with LFI largely contributed to the NPA's implosion in 2024. The revolutionary left should learn a lesson from this: it surely has much more to lose than to gain by cozying up to reformists.
Our path is straight, but the slope is steep.
The libertarian communists of the UCL do not usually give voting instructions of any kind. In a time of rising fascism and ecological emergency, abstentionist rhetoric would be more inaudible than ever, as a large part of the population struggles to see beyond the political horizon of electoralism. At the same time, history teaches us that there are no expectations to be had of a reformist party like La France Insoumise (LFI): we know Mitterrand's record after 1981, even though he championed a program that was in many respects far more radical than LFI's. Worse still, with the far right lying in wait, there is legitimate reason to fear that yet another betrayal by the electoral left could complete its rise and permanently bury all progressive discourse.
But the election campaign period remains a fertile ground for politicization, during which libertarians can also spread their message and try to convince those around them of the urgent need for long-term engagement, outside the electoral calendar. After 10 years of Macronism, the framework of bourgeois elections has never been so openly ridiculous: everyone can see the emptiness of the institutions, and it is precisely on this wave that La France Insoumise (LFI) is riding, presenting itself as the bearer of a "citizens' revolution." It is up to us to politicize this rejection of state institutions by directing it towards our genuinely revolutionary proposals. Because whatever the outcome of the 2027 elections, one thing is certain: whether it is to defend our rights and class interests, or to wrest social gains, we will need to continue and strengthen our struggles in 2027 more than ever.
N. Bartosek (UCL Alsace)
https://www.unioncommunistelibertaire.org/?Presidentielle-2027-Elections-piege-a-cons-et-apres
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Source: A-infos-en@ainfos.ca
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