The Left took Toulouse but lost Marseille. It knocked out Xavier Darcos in Périgueux and put down François Bayrou in Pau. But it failed to mobilize voters--the abstention rate was the highest in decades.
This dispiriting victory may nevertheless be a blessing in disguise. A more robust sanction vote against the Right would have induced a false sense of security. This lackluster win should remind all Socialists that the need for a thorough renovation of the party remains its first challenge.
Sunday, March 16, 2008
A Dispiriting Victory for the Left
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6 comments:
I don't think "dispiriting" is the right word at all.
The PS has won between 30 and 40 new cities and Marseille (and arguably the 5th arrondissement) are the only high-profile semi-surprising disappointments.
I had to laugh listening to the UMP surrogates spinning tonight though. While they all very disciplined and gave the same series of talking points, one of those was that "People are getting impatient ... But they have to understand we can't reform France in 9 months."
Now color me if I am wrong but hasn't the UMP been governing France for six years ?
I am still stunned that journalists gleefully parsed every dissenting note between the PS surrogates (and granted there were plenty) while not pointing out the inherent fallacy of the "not enough time" argument (while, to their credit, they openly laughed at the idea that tonight was a "series of mini-defeat" rather than a "national whopping". As Mr Abadie said, with how many "defeats" in series should constitute "a whopping" then ?).
Bottom line, in my book. The PS clearly won but it was not a wave or a landslide or a tsunami. Which it could have been - as you said - had they had a leader, a plan and a teensy bit of balls.
【 Japanese opinion of Tibet problem 】
Nazis Germany in the middle of the 20th century has acquired international
confidence by holding the Olympics.
This history tries to be repeated by a Chinese government now.
The slaughter that a Chinese army is doing in Tibet resembles the act where Nazis Germany
went to the Jew closely.
Therefore, we Japanese do not support participation in Beijing Olympics by
Japanese Government.
We Japanese will support independence and the founding of a country by the Tibet people as the international society supported the Jew's independent state founding of a country after World War II.
ARt, I suspect you posted this early in the evening. The Left picked up several other major cities, gained seats in the Paris city council, and didn't really "lose" Marseilles in the sense that a UMP incumbent won. As for turnout, two things to keep in mind -- turnout was low in a lot of places where the races were not in doubt, and I read at least one comment (albeit early in the evening) that it was mostly PCF, Green and MoDem voters who stayed home.
Btw, my "balls" comment was a remark about the lack of courage of Socialist leaders when it comes to original thinking and bold stances on issues.
It was not a sexist jab at Ms Royal.
Another reasons to see this as a significant win for the Left -- the additional departmental councils and municipal councils under its control may be able to swing the senate to the left in the fall.
I have to contradict you here Gregory. It is impossible for the Senate to swing to the left in the fall, if only because only a third of it is renewed then.
And the system is so tiered and complicated that every leftist victory is diluted.
But it is more than likely the left will increase its presence in the Senate and the Senatorial elections to watch are in three years where it will start getting closer and closer.
And THAT would be a earthquake.
Only effect of the fall elections is that the 2/3 majority needed for Constitutional changes will probably be much much harder to reach for the majority.
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