Macron prepares to shake up France
Coming legislative election could pose a challenge for president-elect
PARIS— France’s newly elected president has started taking on his new role, working on the attitude expected of a statesman — a new world for a man with little political experience who long remained in the shadows.
Moments after his victory on Sunday, Emmanuel Macron, 39, slowly walked to the stage in the courtyard of the Louvre Museum in Paris, progressively appearing in the light to the sound of the European anthem “Ode to Joy” — a very symbolic moment before the crowd of supporters roared. On Monday morning he appeared side-by-side with outgoing President François Hollande — his former mentor — at a commemoration of the end of World War II.
Macron was literally introduced into politics by Hollande, who chose him as his economy adviser during his 2012 winning campaign.
He followed Hollande to the Élysée Palace, becoming one of his top advisers for two years.
In August 2014, Hollande named him economy minister within his Socialist government. The two men separated when Macron quit in August 2016 to prepare his presidential bid.
The man who will formally become France’s youngest president on Sunday has never held elected office.
He campaigned on pro-business and pro-European policies, a risky move when a populist wave recently swept Donald Trump into the White House and led Britain to vote to leave the EU.
In his victory speech, Macron vowed to “rebuild the relationship between Europe and the peoples that make it.”
He pledged to open a new page for France based on hope and “restored confidence.”
Macron’s next challenge will be to get a parliamentary majority in an election next month — with no mainstream party to support him.
He launched his own political movement last year and pledged to present a candidate in every district under his new “Republic on the Move” banner.
The strong advocate of a free market and entrepreneurial spirit has called for France to be more innovative and focus on getting benefits from globalization.