Personal Log: Adrian Rodd

It's time I used this as an actual blog, no? Well, this Sunday I'll be voting to elect our Member of Parliament (député). It's a foregone conclusion that Sarkozy's chosen candidate for our area will be elected (in France, there's no proportional representation; each area elects its MP in a two-round election), but that doesn't mean I shouldn't make my voice heard.

For the first time, I'm really hesitating, and uncertain whom to vote for. Most often, the choice is fairly easy. But this time I'm hesitating between three candidates, more or less on an equal basis, and I really haven't made up my mind yet.

I could, for instance, do as I usually do, and vote for the Ligue Communiste Révolutionnaire. I voted for them in the presidential election, and they did reasonably well (over 4%), emerging as the probable major force of what I call the genuine left. I share most of their ideas, and I believe it's important their voice, values and suggestions be heard loud and clear in French politics. Since they're the only left-wing party that's not crumbling right now, it's important to show that they have continued support from a significant part of the electorate.

Or, I could go for the Parti Communiste Français. Once a major force in French politics, they began to collapse after they entered government (1997-2002) and failed to assert themselves in the face of their coalition partners. Now they're withering away fast. The party which used to top 20% of the votes in the 1950s received only 1.5% in this year's presidential elections. For the PCF to fade completely would be a disaster (unless they're replaced by a strong and convincing LCR). They're probably going to lose their recognised status as a Parliamentary bloc, and that makes me want to show that they still have support from part of the electorate. Also, in my area the biggest town is Champigny, whose Communist mayor is the PCF's candidate for this election. In other words, the party is still reasonably strong here, which means that every vote can help it achieve a fairly good result (on the local level). For these reasons, I may vote PCF instead of LCR.

Lastly, there's La France en action, a small political movement which will probably get very few votes, but which advocates strong social and environmental policies, as well as increasing animals' rights (they're the only party to do so). I agree strongly with almost all their ideas, which makes them a tempting (and almost obvious) choice. But on the other hand they're new; this is the first I hear about them. Will they just fade after the election, with no-one taking any notice of them, and will my vote therefore have been wasted? Isn't it better to make my vote count by supporting the LCR or the PCF? Or should I want to show, here too, that La France en action's policies and values are strongly supported by at least a few voters?

Choices, choices... We're only a few days from the election, and I'm a long way from having made up my mind.