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France’s presidential elections: Much ado about nothing in Guadeloupe

by Open-Publishing - Friday 13 April 2007
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Edito Parties France FR - Presidential 2007

By Danik Ibraheem Zandwonis
Caribbean Net News Guadeloupe Correspondent

POINT A PITRE, Guadeloupe: The campaign for France’s presidential elections, which has been just completed in Guadeloupe, has not caught the attention of the voters. In spite of the visits of presidential candidates and of an important media group, the inhabitants of Guadeloupe seemed rather indifferent to the different programmes.

Surveys and abstention.

What is new this year? The surveys by Qualistat Institute in October 2006, questioning 503 inhabitants of Guadeloupe on "the interest" shown in the presidential elections showed that 73 percent of the inhabitants of Guadeloupe felt "concerned" with this vote.

Last 20 March, Estima, a new survey agency for opinion studies, after having questioned 430 people, concluded that Nicolas Sarkozy (liberal right-wing), with 36 percent of voting intentions, preceded Ségolène Royal, (Socialist Party) who got 33 percent.

"Forgetting" to analyse the abstention rate (on average more than 55 percent at each election), Estima noted that 14 percent of the inhabitants of Guadeloupe were on the point of voting blank.

Here in Guadeloupe, you need not to be an expert in surveys, to realise that this French presidential election is really not the “cup of tea” of the Guadeloupeans.

However, electoral visits and promises have been relatively numerous. Marie-George Buffet, (French Communist Party), then Ségolène Royal, (Socialist party), Nicolas Sarkozy (UMP) and finally Francois Bayrou (UDF) all came to Guadeloupe.

Is the right wing convincing?

Sarkozy and Royal each preached to the converted in their camps. The meeting of the French ex-interior minister gathered nearly 3,500 people in Abymes (a town close to Pointe-à-Pitre). The same score for Royal, and her "nou ké kasé sa" (we will break this!).

But, Francois Bayrou, leader of the French Democratic Union, was a total flop. A small meeting in a small restaurant with less than 50 people.

However, Sarkozy, the champion of all the promises, opened up his catalogues, including putting an end to clandestine immigration. Do Guadeloupeans still believe in all that? Is the right wing able to convince?

"To cross and chop"

Flash-back to the Lucette Michaux Chevry (LMC) camp (Guadeloupean born ,Senator of Guadeloupe, ex-French Government minister), gathered under the remmants of her party "Objectif Guadeloupe", showed its weaknesses, LMC has been, since 2004,in free fall. It is Gabrielle Louis-Carabin, her rival and political ex-friend, Deputy of Le Moule, (a town in northwest Guadeloupe), who promoted herself the new owner of the pro-France and colonial right-wing. The battle between the two ladies was fierce. LMC did not want to engage with Sarkozy, as long as the current French President, Jacques Chirac, had not announced his decision not to run for this year’s election.

On the contrary, Carabin, “to dissociate” herself from Chevry, very quickly decided to support Sarkozy. She did not hesitate "to cut and chop" all those who dared rise their head in this burlesque comedy?

Lurel or Taubira?

On the left wing, Victorin Lurel (Socialist President of the Regional Council of Guadeloupe) positioned very early under the banner of Ségolène Royal, the Socialist Party (PS) then followed, without any enthusiasm. But the situation changed when Christiane Taubira, a French-born Guyanese, European Parliament Deputy and ex-candidate in 2002 France’s presidential election, after high level negotiations somewhat encroached on Lurel’s territory.

If Ségolène is elected, Taubira, could be a potential minister before Lurel. The other forces of the traditional left wing (PPDG, GUSR) ended by creating a "committee for Ségolène support". But enthusiasm is missing. During the visit of the PS candidate in Guadeloupe, the organisation was not what was expected.

UPLG (Popular Union for Liberation of Guadeloupe) like a ghost

At last, the camp of Guadeloupean Freedom fighters, the Guadeloupean Communist Party and the Martinican Communist Party signed at the end of March a common text appealing for votes for Marie George Buffet (candidate of the French Communist Party). But the results are likely to be disappointing, because the Communist Parties of Guadeloupe and Martinique do not have their former strength.

UPLG, the other Guadeloupean radical and anti-French organisation, published an open letter to Ségolène and to Sarkozy" in vain. Curiously, on April 1, the few rare UPLG militants came out "against" Bayrou.

In the final analysis, it was a monotonous campaign punctuated by a very heavy social climate. The long UGTG strikes were the only signs of animation of a very deserted campaign.

This year, for the first time, Guadeloupeans will vote on Saturday (they used to vote on Sunday, the same as in France, but because of the time difference it was unhelpful). In a small innovation, 11 days before the D-Day, no organisation has called for an abstention. This electoral practice, which until the 80’s marked the electoral Guadeloupean landscape and the influence of the nationalists, is now unused.

One will know, however, even without such evidence, if the people of Guadeloupe decide to turn back to the "democracy" à la Française.

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Forum posts

  • ELU (E) AVEC 0,3 POUR CENT DE VOIX DE PLUS QUE LE (LA) RIVAL (ALE)

    J’ai le fort pressentiment que le vainqueur des élections de ce 6 mai 2007 va avoir chaud : les jeux seront très serrés.

    Cela va se jouer à 0,3 pour cent entre les deux candidats.

    Une différence entre les deux de quelques milliers d’électeurs donc. Cela va être l’élection la plus serrée de l’Histoire.

    Raphaël Zacharie de Izarra
    2, Escalier de la Grande Poterne
    72000 Le Mans
    Tél : 02 43 80 42 98
    raphael.de-izarra@wanadoo.fr