In the twentieth century, the left defined itself as anti-fascist. It was against Franco in Spain, Hitler in Germany, and Mussolini in Italy. During the Cold War, progressive opposed far-right dictators like Augusto Pinochet in Chile and Ferdinand Marcos in the Philippines. It mobilized against neo-Nazis in Germany, right-wing militias in the United States, and fascist formations elsewhere in the world.
Fighting the forces of reaction is still an article of faith for many progressives. But others on the left are making a leap of faith—all the way over to the other side of the political spectrum.
The latest example of this phenomenon is this month’s elections in France where President Emmanuel Macron and far-right candidate Marine Le Pen gathered enough votes to advance to a second round. The left-wing candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon came in a close third, which means that his support will play a pivotal role in deciding the winner of the next round.
If you add together Macron’s nearly 28 percent in the first round and Mélenchon’s 22 percent—plus voters who supported center-left and center-right candidates—the French president will coast to a second term.
But the math doesn’t work out that way. Only 36 percent of Mélenchon voters are committing to …read more
Source:: Institute for Policy Studies
