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Manuel Valls Resigns as French Premier and Declares Presidential Bid Manuel Valls Resigns as French Premier and Declares Presidential Bid
(about 1 hour later)
PARIS — France’s prime minister announced on Monday that he would step down and run in primary contests to be the Socialist candidate in presidential elections next year, despite predictions that he will struggle to surmount strong dissatisfaction with his government and deep divisions on the left.PARIS — France’s prime minister announced on Monday that he would step down and run in primary contests to be the Socialist candidate in presidential elections next year, despite predictions that he will struggle to surmount strong dissatisfaction with his government and deep divisions on the left.
The prime minister, Manuel Valls, 54, who was born in Barcelona and became a French citizen at 20, said he wanted to “give everything for France, which has given me so much.” He pledged to overhaul the French economy while “making globalization work for the people.” The prime minister, Manuel Valls, 54, who was born in Barcelona, Spain, and became a French citizen at 20, said he wanted to “give everything for France, which has given me so much.” He pledged to overhaul the French economy while “making globalization work for the people.”
Mr. Valls, flanked by supporters, was speaking in Évry, a town about 15 miles south of Paris where he was the mayor for more than a decade before becoming President François Hollande’s interior minister in 2012 and prime minister in 2014.Mr. Valls, flanked by supporters, was speaking in Évry, a town about 15 miles south of Paris where he was the mayor for more than a decade before becoming President François Hollande’s interior minister in 2012 and prime minister in 2014.
The announcement by Mr. Valls was expected after Mr. Hollande said he would not seek re-election. Polls predicted that Mr. Valls would fare better in the elections than Mr. Hollande, who has been battered by high unemployment and record-low approval ratings. On Tuesday morning, Mr. Valls officially handed in his resignation at the Élysée Palace. Shortly afterward, Mr. Hollande announced that he had named Bernard Cazeneuve as prime minister and had asked him to form a new government, to be announced later in the day.
Mr. Cazeneuve, who replaced Mr. Valls as interior minister in 2014, is one of Mr. Hollande’s more popular ministers, and he is well-respected across the political spectrum for his coolheaded response to terrorist attacks in France over the past two years.
But with Mr. Hollande’s term coming to a close and the presidential campaign ramping up, Mr. Cazeneuve will in all likelihood be a placeholder until the presidential elections end in the spring. The government is not expected to be reshuffled significantly or tasked with putting forward new policies.
Mr. Valls was expected to announce his candidacy after Mr. Hollande said recently that he would not seek re-election. Polls predicted that Mr. Valls would fare better in the elections than Mr. Hollande, who has been battered by high unemployment and record-low approval ratings.
The most recent polls predicted that Mr. Valls would lead in the first round of voting in the primaries, to be held next month.The most recent polls predicted that Mr. Valls would lead in the first round of voting in the primaries, to be held next month.
But it is unclear how far he will get. The field on the left is crowded, with more than a dozen candidates running, and Mr. Valls is a divisive figure who could struggle to rally leftist rivals, including some of his former ministers.But it is unclear how far he will get. The field on the left is crowded, with more than a dozen candidates running, and Mr. Valls is a divisive figure who could struggle to rally leftist rivals, including some of his former ministers.
Given that he was Mr. Hollande’s prime minister for the past two years, Mr. Valls might also find it hard to battle anti-establishment forces that have shown their political strength elsewhere in Europe and in the United States.Given that he was Mr. Hollande’s prime minister for the past two years, Mr. Valls might also find it hard to battle anti-establishment forces that have shown their political strength elsewhere in Europe and in the United States.
In his announcement speech, Mr. Valls acknowledged that the left was divided. He brought up the memory of 2002, when the far-right National Front candidate came in ahead of the Socialist Party candidate in presidential elections. Mr. Valls said he did not want France to “relive this trauma.”In his announcement speech, Mr. Valls acknowledged that the left was divided. He brought up the memory of 2002, when the far-right National Front candidate came in ahead of the Socialist Party candidate in presidential elections. Mr. Valls said he did not want France to “relive this trauma.”
Polls show that Marine Le Pen, the leader of the National Front, and François Fillon, who recently won primaries on the right, have good chances of reaching the second round of voting, but Mr. Valls dismissed the projections.Polls show that Marine Le Pen, the leader of the National Front, and François Fillon, who recently won primaries on the right, have good chances of reaching the second round of voting, but Mr. Valls dismissed the projections.
“We are told that the far right will automatically reach the second round, but nothing is written in advance,” he said. “We are told that François Fillon is the next president of the republic, but nothing is written in advance.”“We are told that the far right will automatically reach the second round, but nothing is written in advance,” he said. “We are told that François Fillon is the next president of the republic, but nothing is written in advance.”
“Our lives are worth more than their forecasts,” he said.“Our lives are worth more than their forecasts,” he said.
Mr. Valls, who once proclaimed that he loved business and who has called the burkini a “provocation,” has repeatedly departed from the traditional tenets of French socialism, taking a tougher stance on crime and immigration. His government pushed through an overhaul of the French labor code this year, a change that divided the Socialist Party and set off weeks of protests.Mr. Valls, who once proclaimed that he loved business and who has called the burkini a “provocation,” has repeatedly departed from the traditional tenets of French socialism, taking a tougher stance on crime and immigration. His government pushed through an overhaul of the French labor code this year, a change that divided the Socialist Party and set off weeks of protests.
He sought to strike a more diplomatic tone in his announcement speech, calling his candidacy one of “reconciliation.”He sought to strike a more diplomatic tone in his announcement speech, calling his candidacy one of “reconciliation.”
“In my drive to make my political family evolve, I have, at times, used harsh words, provoked debates and incomprehension,” Mr. Valls said. “Of course, each and every one of us is different. But we are together.”“In my drive to make my political family evolve, I have, at times, used harsh words, provoked debates and incomprehension,” Mr. Valls said. “Of course, each and every one of us is different. But we are together.”
Mr. Valls said he would step down as prime minister on Tuesday to prepare for the January primaries, which are open, meaning that leftist parties other than the Socialists are fielding candidates and that voters do not need to be card-carrying party members to participate. Mr. Hollande is expected to appoint a new prime minister and shuffle his cabinet in the coming days. Mr. Valls said he would step down to prepare for the January primaries, which are open, meaning that leftist parties other than the Socialists are fielding candidates and that voters do not need to be card-carrying party members to participate. Mr. Hollande is expected to appoint a new prime minister and shuffle his cabinet in the coming days.
Mr. Valls worked for several Socialist ministers before becoming mayor of Évry in 2001. He was elected the next year to the lower house of Parliament as the Socialist representative for the district that includes Évry.Mr. Valls worked for several Socialist ministers before becoming mayor of Évry in 2001. He was elected the next year to the lower house of Parliament as the Socialist representative for the district that includes Évry.
In 2012 he became Mr. Hollande’s interior minister, and he was named prime minister in 2014 when a new government was formed after broad losses by the Socialist Party in nationwide municipal elections.In 2012 he became Mr. Hollande’s interior minister, and he was named prime minister in 2014 when a new government was formed after broad losses by the Socialist Party in nationwide municipal elections.
Mr. Valls put forward his experience as prime minister, saying that France had to face a world “that has nothing to do with the way it used to be.”Mr. Valls put forward his experience as prime minister, saying that France had to face a world “that has nothing to do with the way it used to be.”
“I want an independent France, unyielding with its values as it faces Xi Jinping’s China, Vladimir Putin’s Russia, Donald Trump’s America, Recep Erdogan’s Turkey,” he said.“I want an independent France, unyielding with its values as it faces Xi Jinping’s China, Vladimir Putin’s Russia, Donald Trump’s America, Recep Erdogan’s Turkey,” he said.