Word: chaban
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Dates: during 1970-1979
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Image, in fact, is Chaban's greatest liability and probably the main reason why, despite the endorsement of the Gaullist Party, he trailed Giscard last week. Throughout his 29-year political career, Chaban has striven to appear youthful, athletic and energetic-and succeeded all too well. Many Frenchmen regard Chaban, who was a national tennis finalist in 1965, as a "playboy," not sérieux enough to be President. Married three times, in a Catholic country where divorce is still a political handicap, he has become saddled with the nicknames "Beau Jacques"and "Charmant Delmas." Moreover, he still...
Gaullist Mantle. Chaban's major campaign tactic has been to wrap himself in the Gaullist mantle. In the halls in which he speaks, his photo is flanked by those of Charles de Gaulle and Georges Pompidou. As the symbol that will appear beside his name on the ballot, he has chosen De Gaulle's emblem, the cross of Lorraine-a reminder of Chaban's key role during the Resistance. After attending a Chaban rally outside Paris, TIME Correspondent George Taber noted: "Over the auditorium hung an aura of nostalgia and past triumphs. The audience was made...
...Although Chaban and Giscard at first agreed not to attack each other, Chaban last week warned his fellow Gaullists that Giscard will not be able to beat Mitterrand in the runoff. Chaban exhorted: "I say that I can defeat Mitterrand. You cannot joke on the May 5 ballot. Vote wisely! Vote Chaban-Delmas, who can keep us from the peril of Mitterrand...
Giscard's strength in the polls has been the biggest surprise of the campaign. In part this results from the "stop Chaban" movement among the Gaullists in early April, when nominations were still open. It failed, but many Gaullists are still unenthusiastic about the former Premier. Also, Giscard's image is that of a man who is brilliant, aristocratic and cool; no one has ever accused him of not being sérieux. The audiences at his rallies, considerably younger than those at Chaban's, thoroughly enjoy it when Giscard drops his professorial mien to demolish...
...Giscard maintains his momentum and outruns Chaban, the Gaullist Party will suffer a serious and perhaps fatal setback. "Then we will bury General de Gaulle for a second time," says Gaullist Minister of the Interior Jacques Chirac. In the runoff, as the sole candidate of the center and right, Giscard would be favored to top Mitterrand. The current campaign, however, has had several surprises. Thus, no one rules out the long-odds possibility that Mitterrand may just get a majority on May 5, winning the presidency and making the Giscard-Chaban duel on the right an empty exercise...