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Voters | Anne-Marie Gutierrez (82): “I think immigration is too rampant”

Anne-Marie Gutiérrez is 82 years old and this time she had to be part of the electoral table as a consultant. She has not yet voted, but she will vote soon, because she believes that the current situation is “quite serious.” He wants the direction of the country to change. He assures that the main problems are the lack of security, immigration and the state of public finances. “The context of violence is greater than ever,” highlights this retiree, whose grandfather emigrated from Spain in the 1920s. When asked what violence he is referring to, he cites cases of refusal to obey the authorities, for example, by motorists when faced with a police checkpoint. “Refusés d’obtemperer”, as they are called in French, often appear in the local press, especially when they result in injuries and deaths.

Gutiérrez voted in the 16th arrondissement of Paris, one of the richest in the French capital. There are two signs in front of the polling station. Under the first, that of the Macronist candidate, a yellow sheet reads: “Not a single vote for the RN (Marine Le Pen’s far-right party). Not a single vote for the LFI (La Francia Insumisa party, allied with Podemos and whose leader is Jean-Luc Mélenchon). The second poster has the image of the right-wing candidate, but also images of Jordan Bardella, Marine Le Pen’s dolphin; Marion Maréchal, his niece; and Eric Ciotti, the leader of Los Republicans (LR, right), who was expelled from his party for his willingness to agree with the extreme right.

Gutierrez is not bothered by what Ciotti did. “He has crossed the taboo,” he says, adding that he has never voted for President Emmanuel Macron’s party. He believes there is a lack of “true will” to limit immigration, which he considers “too big.” “France is not a open bar”, he stressed, however, highlighting that immigration cannot be stopped either, as many sectors such as healthcare rely on migrant workers. He does not believe that the RN is a racist party. “It is not true. They say that to discredit a political party,” he says.