Marine assurance SHE has the glint in the eye and the breezy confidence of a politician who knows that things are going her way. Marine Le Pen, leader of the populist National Front, is heading into the two rounds of French local elections on March 23rd and 30th with the largest number of candidates the party has ever fielded at municipal level. Already, at the 2012 presidential election, she bagged nearly 18% of the vote, coming third to the mainstream candidates on the left and the right. This time, in towns where the Front is standing for municipal councils, Ms Le Pen is hoping to do even better. “Do you realize what that means, for a movement with little local elected base?” she says, almost in disbelief. “Something is happening.”The municipal elections are the first mid-term test for François Hollande since he captured the presidency in May 2012. His Socialist Party is bracing itself for sweeping losses. With an approval rating in the polls of just 19%, Mr Hollande is the most unpopular modern French president ahead of any similar election. The economy is still sluggish and unemployment remains painfully high. His government is…
