French nationalist leader Jean-Marie Le Pen mixed traditional anti-immigration rhetoric with pledges to families, farmers and the poor in a broad speech setting out his fifth presidential election campaign today.
Mr Le Pen, who stunned France by coming second to Jacques Chirac in the previous election five years ago, told a rally he would impose strict immigration controls and pay for social projects by cutting off welfare to foreigners.
He also sought to tap public concerns about the environment and global warming and proposed a Marshall Plan for the countryside echoing reconstruction plans after World War Two.
French National Front leader Jean-Marie Le Pen
"I will be the president of the men and women of the countryside because upon them rests the honour of being French," the National Front party leader told flag-waving supporters.
He reiterated criticism of the European Union and globalisation and he denounced global financial speculators as "sharks" in bed with Russian and French oligarchs.
"I will be the president who restablishes the right to govern without our sovereignty being confiscated," he said.
In remarks designed to capitalise on growing popular distrust of the political elite, Mr Le Pen addressed his policies to the "low ranks, farmers, pensioners, widows, street kids". "To those of you who work for peanuts, I say let us take back power and relive the pleasure of being French."
Mr Le Pen is doing better in the race for the April-May presidential election than he was before the 2002 poll. But he is far behind the leading candidates, conservative Nicolas Sarkozy and Socialist Segolene Royal. He also trails centrist Francois Bayrou, the alternative candidate who has seen the biggest surge in his ratings.
A poll for Journal du Dimanchenewspaper suggested 11.5 per cent of voters planned to vote for Mr Le Pen in the first stage of the two-round election, lagging Mr Bayrou on 17 per cent. Ms Royal and Mr Sarkozy are level for the first round on 28 per cent following a turnaround in the Socialist's campaign.
Today's rally in the industrial working class town of Lille aims to address Mr Le Pen's perceived weakness on social issues as he aims to present credible policies that are part of an image revamp by his daughter Marine.
In 2002, security and crime topped the list of voters concerns and this fitted neatly within Mr Le Pen's nationalist anti-immigration platform. Mr Sarkozy has moved into the National Front's traditional law-and-order territory and voters' worries have shifted to jobs and purchasing power, neither of them strong points for Mr Le Pen.
Mr Le Pen has also not yet collected the 500 signatures from mayors and other elected officials that he needs to run in the election before a March 16th deadline. As in 2002, he has accused his rivals of scaring off supporters and said he would consider legal action.