French protest violence: A ‘Christmas present’ for Le Pen’s far right?

As massive protests swept through cities across France over the weekend, degenerating into riots in many places, far-right politician Marine Le Pen has attempted to profit from the crisis ahead of the presidential election in April 2027. On Sunday, the leader of the National Rally party, or RN by its French initials, railed against President Emmanuel Macron’s handling of the crisis in a video statement, saying the outgoing centre-right leader no longer has any “credibility or authority” and that the country’s people were caught between his austerity “hammering” them on the one hand and “insurrectionary activists” on the left on the other.