THE 19th-century mansion on the chic left bank of Paris, with its tiled floors and sweeping stone staircase, was for decades an iconic part of French Socialist history. François Mitterrand arrived there in 1981 to celebrate his victory as the first Socialist president of modern France. Ségolène Royal, the party’s presidential candidate in 2007, waved valiantly to crowds from the building’s balcony after her defeat. Late last year, however, the cash-strapped party had to sell its grand headquarters and find new premises in a modern office in an unfashionable suburb. The episode serves as a cruel metaphor for the ailing party.
Last year, a party that has supplied two Fifth Republic presidents and nine prime ministers was rudely rejected at the ballot box. Its presidential candidate, Benoît Hamon, came in a humiliating fifth place with just 6% of the vote. At the legislative elections that followed the party was almost...Continue reading
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