Macron’s ratings continue to drop
PARIS: A month of “yellow vest” protests have taken a further toll on the popularity of French President Emmanuel Macron, a new poll showed on Sunday, with analysts saying he will be forced to change his style of governing.
Around 66,000 protesters turned out again on Saturday on the fifth round of anti-government demonstrations, which sprung up over diesel taxes last month. The figure was about half the number of the previous weekend, suggesting momentum was waning and the most acute political crisis of Macron’s 19-month presidency was coming to an end.
“It is calming down, but what remains of it all is a strong feeling of hatred towards Macron,” said sociologist Herve Le Bras from the School of Advanced Studies in the Social Sciences.
A major poll by the Ifop group published in Journal du Diman- che newspaper showed Macron’s approval had slipped another two points in the last month, to 23%.
The proportion of people who declared themselves “very dissatisfied” by his leadership jumped by six points to 45%.
Many of the protesters have targeted Macron personally, calling on him to resign or targeting his background as an investment banker and alleged elitism.
Le Bras said the protests underlined the depth of dislike for Macron’s style of governing.
“Even by being more humble, it’s going to be complicated,” he added.