France’s Macron Promises New Approach During Second-Term Inauguration

France's Military Chief of Staff to the presidency Benoit Puga stands next to French President Emmanuel Macron (R) signing a document as he is sworn-in for a second term as president after his reelection, during a ceremony at the Elysee Palace in Paris on May 7, 2022. (Gonzalo Fuentes/Pool via Reuters)

PARIS—France’s Emmanuel Macron was sworn in for his second term as president on Saturday, promising to lead the country with a “new method” as his political rivals kicked off campaigning for next month’s legislative election.

In a country where presidents rarely get reelected, Macron won 58.5 percent of the votes in the second round against Marine Le Pen, despite strong opposition to his pro-business policies and a proposal to raise the retirement age.

In a short speech, Macron spoke of the need to innovate at a time of unprecedented challenges for the world and for France, and said his second term would be “new” and not merely a continuation of his first five years in office.

“We need to invent a new method together, far from tired traditions and routines, with which we can build a new productive, social, and ecological contract,” he said, promising to act with “respect” and “consideration.”

He did not outline any new policy proposals, but highlighted the threat posed by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the global environmental crisis.

Among the 500 guests present were former presidents Francois Hollande and Nicolas Sarkozy, former prime ministers Edouard Philippe, Manuel Valls, Alain Juppe, and Jean-Pierre Raffarin, as well as religious leaders and other state figures.

Campaign Launches

Macron’s inauguration marked the start of campaigning for the June 12–19 parliamentary vote.

A new coalition formed between Hollande’s Socialist Party, the La France Insoumise (France Unbowed) party, the Greens, and the Communist Party—is hoping to deprive Macron of a majority in parliament.

Under the banner of the “New Popular, Social, and Ecological Union” (NUPES), representatives of the alliance’s different parties addressed a convention in the Parisian suburb of Seine-Saint-Denis.

“We are putting in place an act of collective resistance,” said France Insoumise leader Jean-Luc Melenchon, who ran against Macron in the presidential election and is now bidding to become prime minister.

The once-dominant parties of Hollande and Sarkozy—the Socialists and Les Republicains—have been severely weakened in recent years, in part due to the rise of Macron’s political movement.

As the Socialists joined the leftist alliance, Les Republicains kicked off its campaign by ruling out pacts with any prominent parties.

Le Pen’s National Rally (RN) was absent from the political stage on Saturday. Le Pen herself is resting in the countryside and will be back early this week, her campaign team said.

Macron is due to visit the European Parliament in Strasbourg for “Europe Day” on Monday and to meet German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin on the same day.