Benoit Hamon is the candidate of the left in the next French presidential elections. The 49-year-old ex-minister of education, representative of the more radical wing of the Socialist Party, has clearly detached the former prime minister, the moderate Manuel Valls, in the primary ballot for his candidacy for the Elysée.
Hamon obtained 58,65% of the votes, against 41,35% for Valls in a vote that saw a significantly higher turnout than in the first round. "Tonight the left has reared its head, it heads towards the future and wants to win," said Hamon.
His victory, however, according to the polls, does not help the already complicated race for the Elysium of the socialists, who have arrived at this internal confrontation in a context of strong divisions and general weakness.
Next April 23, voting day, the socialists would stop in the first round of the presidential elections, even in fifth place, leaving the way cleared towards the ballot for the leader of the far right Marine Le Pen, who would challenge the candidate of the right Francois Fillon, the latter in great difficulty due to the scandal linked to the hiring of his wife Penelope as a parliamentary assistant.
