This is a historic Congress for the national Front

This is a historic Congress for the national Front. This weekend in Tours, Jean-Marie Le Pen, eighty-two years, its founder in 1972 and since then, President shall officially declare which his daughter Marine Le Pen or of that time who was his dauphin, Bruno Gollnisch, succeeded him as head of the extreme-right party. And, unlike the previous Congress in which Jean-Marie Le Pen was re-elected by acclamation, it were all membership dues to 10 December last (of 23,000 to 24,000 people) who were called to vote by mail until this week.

The election gave rise to an internal campaign often tense between supporters of both candidates. During which Jean-Marie Le Pen did not, as he had an announced time, a position of adjudicator, constantly pounding his preference for his daughter. Throughout the competition, Bruno Gollnisch, whose supporters have often denounced in Marine Le Pen "establishment" candidate, has tried to bridge the media gap by being more present it in the federations. He also cleverly suggested to its rival a ticket for the presidential election. At him the Presidency of the national Front, in the bid for 2012. An option that Marine Le Pen dismissed strongly, playing instead from the activists on the Presidency of the party and nominated coupling to the presidential. And relying in this strategy on notoriety, his media presence, constantly appear to be the favourite, receiving the support of his father and the party apparatus, mostly "mariniste."

Two logical conflicting

"There are two logical conflicting." Marine Le Pen embodies the electoral appearance of the Front, it is now the best candidate perceived by supporters. From this point of view, it has a dynamic in its favour because polls up. Bruno Gollnisch, him, is another logic, party, to strengthen its management, bringing together different families. "And should not overlook the true basis he has with activists," observed Gilles Ivaldi, CNRS researcher at the University of Nice, which underlines the great unknown is the composition of the electoral body of the national Front. If the two candidates agree on the fundamentals of the Party - national preference, the rejection of immigration, the output of the euro, the restoration of the death penalty-, they differ in style, culture, certain economic or societal (abortion, pensions...) and the vision of the party.

Marine Le Pen has shown willingness to leave the doors of the party "broken arms" of the movement, "fundamentalist Catholic", the "pétainistes" and "the wonks of the Shoah". "". "I hope everything and, at the same time, it will not to stigmatize anti-communism activists or advocates of the French Algeria" replied Bruno Gollnisch. But these statements have not prevented Marine Le Pen, during a meeting in Lyon, on the lands of his rival, to make his famous comparison between the Nazi occupation and "prayers in the streets" Muslims. The opportunity to kill two birds with one stone: give a pledge of radical activists and refute, before politico-médiatique outcry, the argument of an application of the "establishment".

The outcome of the vote is not completely acquired, although clan Le Pen seemed very confident in recent weeks. And regardless of the winner, the difference of votes be important: he will shape the future face of the party, the ability of one or the other to impose or to burden his views.