Word: mitterrand
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Dates: during 1970-1979
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...There is no heir to Gaullism. Georges Pompidou's death has ended the lineage. It is finished." So declared Socialist Party Leader Francçois Mitterrand, 57, who stands a reasonable chance of breaking Gaullism's 16-year monopoly of the presidency of the Fifth Republic. With twelve candidates running to succeed Pompidou in the May 5 election, public opinion polls last week showed that Socialist Mitterrand, who also has the support of France's formidable Communist Party, is now favored by 40% of the voters. Most of the Gaullist and middle-of-the-road vote...
...Mitterrand, in the two remaining weeks of the campaign, can attract enough backing from left-wing Gaullists or centrists to give him more than 50% of the total, he will become France's new President. If not, he will face the candidate with the second highest vote in a runoff on May 19. At present, Mitterrand's support probably represents the hard-core vote he will get from the dedicated left: about 20% coming from the Communists, a bit more than that from the Socialists. His problem-which has faced every leftist leader in modern French history...
...Frenchman carries his heart on the left but his wallet on the right." Traditionally, many bourgeois vote left or at least threaten to do so as a protest. However, they quickly return to the center or right if it appears that a leftist has a chance of winning. Thus Mitterrand's best opportunity for a victory will come on the first ballot, while Chaban and Giscard fight among themselves for Gaullist support; in a runoff, he would face a unified Gaullist front...
...Mitterrand's opponents have already played on bourgeois fears by implying that his victory would open the door to the Communists. In a speech last week, Chaban warned: "France is threatened by a Socialist-Communist coalition. We want nothing...
Fringe Candidates. Mitterrand's chances of ultimate victory are far from certain. Because the Socialists and Communists constitute less than half of the French electorate, he cannot win on the second ballot unless he gains the support of a large number of Frenchmen who have traditionally feared what might happen if Communists came to power. Mitterrand has tried to allay these fears by portraying himself as a responsible statesman and has stressed his commitment to civil liberties. But at a press conference last week, Mitterrand conceded that if elected, he would appoint Communists to Cabinet posts in his government...