- Title: Rookie French lawmaker reaches out from fortune-teller's van
- Date: 3rd July 2017
- Summary: CHARTRES, FRANCE (FILE - FEBRUARY 1, 2017) (REUTERS) CATHEDRAL WITH SIGN READING "CHARTRES" IN GIANT LETTERS IN FOREGROUND IN CENTRAL SQUARE SIGN
- Embargoed: 17th July 2017 09:46
- Keywords: Guillaume Kasbarian LREM Macron management consultant MP National Assembly Chartres
- Location: PARIS, MAINTENON, EPERNON, CHAMPHOL AND CHARTRES, FRANCE
- City: PARIS, MAINTENON, EPERNON, CHAMPHOL AND CHARTRES, FRANCE
- Country: France
- Topics: Government/Politics,Elections/Voting
- Reuters ID: LVA0046O5Y4HZ
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: PLEASE NOTE: THIS STORY WAS ORIGINALLY FILED ON JUNE 27, 2017 AS 2152-FRANCE-POLITICS/LAWMAKER. IT IS BEING REFILED WITH NO CHANGES MADE TO THE ORIGINAL EDIT.
New French lawmaker Guillaume Kasbarian dreams of criss-crossing his constituency once a week to meet voters in a red and green fortune-teller's caravan that is for sale in a local garage.
The 30-year old business consultant is one of an army novices whose election to parliament last month for President Emmanuel Macron's new Republic on the Move party completed a seismic shift in France's political landscape.
Kasbarian had never been involved in politics before joining the independent centrist party when it was set up a year ago.
Now he wants to put the spark back into politics in his Eure-et-Loir constituency south west of Paris to reengage disillusioned voters who stayed away from the ballot box in record numbers.
Some 415 of the 577 lawmakers are newcomers, elected to a younger, more diverse parliament that began sitting on June 27.
The 30-year-old political rookie Kasbarian won his parliamentary seat in his constituency in Chartres against long-term conservative mayor of the town Jean-Pierre Gorges who had held the parliamentary seat since 2002.
Reuters followed Kasbarian on his new daily lawmaker duties on Monday (June 26) as he visited a fire station and a hi-tech foam factory, and on his quest to find his caravan.
He visited French parliament last week for the first time to receive his lawmaker's tool-kit, including a tri-coloured scarf and parliament's rule book, all inside a leather briefcase.
Kasbarian said he was well aware of the difficulties ahead, would be loyal to Macron and will make his voice heard. - Copyright Holder: FILE REUTERS (CAN SELL)
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