- Title: France's Macron plans to take parliament as poll ratings rise
- Date: 19th January 2017
- Summary: PARIS, FRANCE (JANUARY 19, 2017) (REUTERS) ****WARNING CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY*** VARIOUS EXTERIORS OF HEADQUARTERS OF POLITICAL MOVEMENT OF FRENCH PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE, EMMANUEL MACRON, "EN MARCHE!" ("ONWARD!") VARIOUS OF MACRON ADDRESSING NEWS CONFERENCE (SOUNDBITE) (French) FRENCH PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE, EMMANUEL MACRON, SAYING: "As far as parliamentary elections are concerned, "En Marche!" will field 577 candidates with the aim of winning a ruling majority for the president. Until the presidential elections, "En Marche!" will remain a political movement allowing multiple allegiances. From today, we are inviting candidates to come forward for the parliamentary elections. All members of the movement or those who would like to join it can sign up online from today." SIGN ON PODIUM READING (French): "BUILDING A MAJORITY WITH A PROJECT" MACRON ADDRESSING NEWS CONFERENCE (SOUNDBITE) (French) FRENCH PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE, EMMANUEL MACRON, SAYING: ""En Marche!" is there to welcome and represent applications from citizens who are politically engaged. They can be Socialists, radicals, Ecologists, centrists or Republicans as long as they agree with our programme. All parliamentarians who believe in the Republic who agree with our values and our methods are welcome to fly the flag for "En Marche!", all the while respecting the principles that have been laid out here." CAMERAMAN FILMING MACRON LEAVING INTERIOR OF OFFICES OF "EN MARCHE!" WITH POSTER READING (French): "I'M MARCHING!" (PLAY ON NAME OF MOVEMENT) / "LET'S MARCH, LET'S MARCH" (PLAY ON LYRICS OF FRENCH NATIONAL ANTHEM)" VARIOUS PICTURES OF PERSONNEL VARIOUS OF VOLUNTEERS WORKING VOLUNTEER STUDENT, PIERRE-ANTOINE, WORKING (SOUNDBITE) (French) VOLUNTEER STUDENT, PIERRE-ANTOINE, SAYING: "There are almost 200 of us "helpers" at "En Marche!" which means we deal with all the emails which are sent to us with various questions, questions about the programme, questions about people who've signed up to committees. We also answer the phone, as you can see we've got lots of phones, so we answer the many calls we get." VOLUNTEER STUDENT, MAELLE CHARREAU, ON TELEPHONE CHARREAU TYPING (SOUNDBITE) (French) VOLUNTEER STUDENT, MAELLE CHARREAU, SAYING: "Particularly when you're in here I really feel like we're in a young political start up. We do things completely differently, there are lots of us, the organisation is very horizontal, there's no hierarchy which is very nice. And then there's the personality of Emmanuel Macron which appeals to all of us here, his youth but also his political bravery."
- Embargoed: 2nd February 2017 13:37
- Keywords: Macron France election presidential poll parliamentary
- Location: PARIS, FRANCE
- City: PARIS, FRANCE
- Country: France
- Topics: Government/Politics,Elections/Voting
- Reuters ID: LVA0015ZQZBRB
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: With favourable poll ratings and his Socialist competitors in disarray, French presidential candidate Emmanuel Macron said on Thursday (January 19) that he planned to field candidates across the country in parliamentary elections set to take place later in the year.
A poll carried out by Cevipof and published in newspaper "Le Monde" on Thursday showed Macron polling between 17 and 21 percent of the vote, depending on who he faces, in presidential elections to be held in the spring.
In recent weeks the 39 year-old ex-economy minister has cemented his position as the third man in the race, against the conservative's Francois Fillon and the far right's Marine Le Pen.
Speaking to the media on Thursday, he said candidates from his political movement "En Marche!" ("Onwards!") would contest every constituency in the legislative elections in June which follow the presidential poll.
"From today, we are inviting candidates to come forward for the parliamentary elections. All members of the movement or those who would like to join it can sign up online from today," he said.
""En Marche!" is there to welcome and represent applications from citizens who are politically engaged. They can be Socialists, radicals, Ecologists, centrists or Republicans as long as they agree with our programme," he added.
While there are no polls yet for the parliamentary elections, he is well ahead of Hollande's Socialists in opinion polls for the presidential ballot, triggering speculation that he will win sizeable backing from Socialist lawmakers.
Macron said that 185,000 people have now signed up for his movement and he has been holding well-attended rallies across the country.
At the nerve centre of the organisation in southern Paris, volunteers, many young students, field calls and emails from the curious.
"Particularly when you're in here I really feel like we're in a young political start up. We do things completely differently, there are lots of us, the organisation is very horizontal, there's no hierarchy which is very nice. And then there's the personality of Emmanuel Macron which appeals to all of us here, his youth but also his political bravery," political science student Maelle Charreau told Reuters TV.
Macron organised his news conference hours before former colleagues in the ruling Socialist party were due to hold the last of their televised debates in a primary campaign to pick their candidate for president. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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