in the midst of a political crisis, the French display a paradoxical opinion
And the government fell. The censure against Michel Barnier’s executive, adopted on December 4 by a large majority of deputies, was also approved by a slight majority of French people (53%), according to a Harris interactive poll. Marie, a 67-year-old retiree from Tarn, was one of them: “I didn’t vote for the presidential party or for LR, so I’m rather happy to see the government fall. » But the story doesn’t end there. According to the same institute, 82% of voters fear the consequences of this vote for the future of France… including Marie.
So, were the “refractory Gauls” never satisfied? They would in any case be a little more numerous this year to declare that they belong to a “dissatisfied” France, but also fewer to say they are “very angry” (1). “Generalized annoyance is cyclical in politics,” explains Gilles Ivaldi, CNRS research fellow in political science. And it is not specific to France, we also see it in Italy or the United States. »
This dissatisfaction comes from afar, fueled by multiple crises experienced in recent years on the health, energy and even security levels. Co-author of Cevipof’s annual barometer of political confidence, the researcher recalls that this disenchantment between politicians and their voters is sometimes driven by contradictory wishes. Last June, the rise in citizens’ distrust of their institutions did not prevent participation in the legislative elections from reaching a historic level. “Voters seem to suffer from schizophrenia and favor values and ideas that are not always compatible on paper,” says Antoine Bristielle, director of the Opinion Observatory of the Jean-Jaurès Foundation. Numerous data tend to show that the population is, for example, more tolerant in matters of morals while voting more to the extreme right. »
No blank check in government
The political scientist explains this complex picture by the more varied composition of social categories. Less politically homogeneous than in the past, the latter seem more inclined to support apparently divergent ideas. An example: the French are more disposed to cultural openness, but also aspire to more authority. “We must not only look at the large traditional social groups,” notes Gilles Ivaldi. The yellow vests did not all have the same social profile but were united on their life experiences: dissatisfaction at work, declining purchasing power and an increasing demand for democratic expression. » Not signing a blank check to politicians may imply greater demands and better control from decision-makers, the analyst also points out. On the condition that these contradictions are not taken over by the populists… and do not prevent France from regaining political stability.
(1) French fractures, November 2024 – Ipsos.
