The French have decided: at the end of a funny campaign, marked in particular by the controversy over the use of consulting firms by the State, the war in Ukraine and a temporary resurgence of the Covid-19 epidemic, Emmanuel Macron and Marine Le Pen will meet in the second round of the presidential election.
Like in 2017.
To discover
LIVE – Presidential 2022: follow the start of the second round campaign
Second round: compare the programs of Macron and Le Pen
Presidential 2022: find here the result of the first round of the election
The RN-backed candidate focused her campaign on defending purchasing power, believing her electorate already knew her positions on immigration and security.
Opposite, the head of state defended his record and promised to continue the reforms initiated since the start of his five-year term, including that on pensions.
The duel between these two representatives that everything opposes will occupy the media space during the next weeks.
To help you better understand their positions and campaign proposals,
Le Figaro invites
you to find some of our checks carried out in recent months.
The LREM candidate, during an intervention on the radio, in April.
LUDOVIC MARIN / AFP
Education: an increasing level of students?
Disagreement between the Court of Auditors and the rue de Grenelle.
In a report, the magistrates estimated that the "
overall performance of the French education system
" would tend to "
degrade
".
“
The French education system is performing poorly
,” they also write.
A finding rejected by the Minister of National Education, Jean-Michel Blanquer.
So, who is right ?
Read alsoIs the academic level of French students really improving?
Budget: the billions of "
whatever it costs
" have made it possible to save money?
The idea may seem paradoxical: for the Minister of Economy and Finance, the enormous sums put on the table to protect activity and businesses during the Covid-19 crisis have made it possible to avoid... seeing expenses increase further.
“
We would have been much more impoverished if we had not spent money to protect employees and companies
”, assured Bruno Le Maire.
An idea taken up by Emmanuel Macron, since.
Is right ?
Read alsoDid “whatever it costs” prevent an explosion of debt?
Security: are the 10,000 promised jobs really there?
This was one of Emmanuel Macron's key promises in 2017: to considerably strengthen the workforce of the police, by recruiting "
10,000 additional police and gendarmes
".
Five years later, some, like Nicolas Dupont-Aignan, question the results of the five-year term on this point.
Is the account good?
Have the positions actually been created?
Read alsoWas there really 10,000 additional police and gendarmes positions during Macron's five-year term?
Employment: has the unemployment reduction target been achieved?
The fight against unemployment is both one of the central causes of Macron's five-year term, as well as one of the arguments brandished at will by the President of the Republic to defend his record.
Despite the crises, including the Covid-19 shock, “
today we have an unemployment rate which is the lowest for fifteen years
”, repeated Emmanuel Macron on several occasions.
Marine Le Pen, however, disputes the veracity of these figures: we therefore take stock.
Read alsoIs unemployment really at its lowest "for fifteen years"?
Competitiveness: is “
reindustrialisation
” underway?
While France has seen its industrial fabric shrinking for decades, the executive claims to have started to reverse the trend.
A dynamic has been set in motion, say Bruno Le Maire like Emmanuel Macron, adding that France is starting to see factories, projects and investments return.
So what do the numbers say?
Read alsoIs France “regaining the level of reindustrialization of the Trente Glorieuses”?
Pensions: is a reform inevitable?
Pension reform, the return.
If re-elected, Emmanuel Macron has already announced that he wants to raise the legal retirement age to 65.
““
Anyone who tells you that we can keep things as they are is lying.
This system is in deficit, it will be for several years
”, he hammered recently.
An analysis contested by the unions and oppositions.
So what about it?
Is there a funding problem for our pensions?
Read alsoIs a reform inevitable to balance the pension system?
Immigration: France, less concerned by "
illegals
"
Is France less affected by illegal immigration than its neighbours?
At the end of 2021, the Minister of the Interior assured that “
France has far fewer illegal immigrants than most major European countries, starting with Great Britain
”.
Is it true ?
Read alsoImmigration: are there “much fewer illegal immigrants” in France than in other “big countries” in Europe?
The RN candidate, during an intervention in front of the press, at the end of March.
THOMAS COEX / AFP
Employment: can the “
national priority
” apply to the world of work?
Among the tracks appearing in her program, the RN candidate proposes to assign "
priority to French workers
" over foreigners.
But is it possible, legally, to implement this idea?
Will it not be considered as discrimination and censored?
Read alsoCan we assign “priority to French workers” over foreigners?
Immigration: can a referendum change the Constitution?
If she is elected, Marine Le Pen wishes to modify, via a referendum, the French Constitution to apply her program.
Objective: “
modify
” the status of foreigners, access to nationality and “
enforce
” national law over international law.
But is it really possible?
Read alsoImmigration: can we revise the Constitution by referendum, as Marine Le Pen asserts?
Security: the Christian religion, the “
most threatened
” in France?
Are Christians the believers most targeted by anti-religious acts?
Asked about Cnews, the spokesperson for the RN, Julien Odoul, assured him: “
the Christian religion is the most threatened in France
”.
Is that what the numbers show?
Read alsoIs the Christian religion "the most threatened in France"?
Nuclear: can the Fessenheim plant still be restarted?
If elected, the RN candidate wants to "
relaunch the nuclear industry
" in France, in order to fight against fossil fuels.
And, in mid-March, Marine Le Pen again indicated that she wanted to reopen the Fessenheim plant, “
if it is still possible
”.
So is it too late?
Or does this track still exist?
Read alsoIs it still possible to reopen Fessenheim?
Institutions: the absence of proportional representation, a French exception?
For Marine Le Pen, the introduction of proportional representation in legislative elections would allow “
the French to be represented
”.
France is an exception in Europe on this issue, she added.
Is right ?
Read alsoIs France the only country in Europe not to have introduced proportional representation in legislative elections?
Infrastructure: can we renationalise motorways?
This is one of Marine Le Pen's flagship promises: in the event of victory, the candidate intends to take control of the management of the motorways, in order, in particular, to lower "
tolls by 15%
".
A way, she says, to restore purchasing power to households.
But is it believable?
Would the bill for nationalization be bearable for the public accounts?
Read alsoCan the state nationalize highways?
Social: France, the most generous country with illegal immigrants?
At the end of 2021, when a tragedy had led to the death of migrants off Calais, Marine Le Pen had argued that a large part of the people questioned at the Polish-Belarusian border wanted to come to France, not go to the United Kingdom. .
“
It is in France that illegal immigrants have the most access to social assistance, to care
,” she added then.
“
Illegals look at the offers from different countries, and they go where their situation will be improved
,” she said again.
Is right ?
Is France so generous?
Read alsoIs France the country where illegal immigrants have the most access to social assistance?
Find our other checks on the programs and declarations of the two candidates
Read alsoSecurity, employment, budget… We checked ten statements by Emmanuel Macron
Read alsoNuclear, security, Ukraine: we checked eleven statements by Marine Le Pen
