Paris mayor Hidalgo to run for French president

Paris, Sep 12 (EFE).- Paris Socialist mayor Anne Hidalgo on Sunday announced her intention to run for president in next year’s elections, focusing on restoring equal opportunities, although her chances are slim as the left-wing is fragmented.

The 62-year-old, who came to France from Spain as a young child and who has been mayor of the capital since 2014, voiced her concerns about the state of her adopted nation as she announced her intention to stand in the presidential election.

“Today, I am worried about this France that gave me my chance,” she said in the northwestern French city of Rouen. “This France of freedom, which sees these freedoms shrinking like a thin skin.”

 “This France of equality sees its injustices deepening every day, this France of fraternity is divided into hostile groups, into separate communities, into factions that express their bitterness, their anger, sometimes with so much violence,” she added.

She criticized the inability of incumbent president Emmanuel Macron to tackle the social and ecological problems that she said have “worsened” during his term.

Although she did not want to reveal details of her campaign, she said it would be mainly about the ecological transition and improving workers’ purchasing power. EFE

ac/ta/ks