Adam Novak
The exchange between philosopher Frédéric Lordon and La France Insoumise raises questions central to ecosocialist strategy internationally: whether electoral left formations can genuinely challenge capitalism, and what distinguishes rhetorical anticapitalism from the real thing.
In October 2025, the French philosopher and economist Frédéric Lordon published a provocative essay asking whether La France Insoumise (LFI, France Unbowed) — France’s main radical left formation — deserves to call itself anticapitalist. His answer: not yet, and perhaps not seriously.
Founded by Jean-Luc Mélenchon in 2016, the movement took 22% in the first round of the 2022 presidential election — narrowly missing the runoff against Marine Le Pen. It anchors the Nouveau Front Populaire (NFP, New Popular Front), the left coalition that unexpectedly won the most seats in the 2024 legislative elections. Its programme, L’Avenir en commun (The Future in Common), combines ecosocialism, a Sixth Republic constitution, retirement at 60, and exit from EU fiscal constraints. LFI represents the most significant left-of-social-democracy formation in Western Europe with a realistic prospect of governmental power.
Lordon’s essay sparked substantial debate. Antoine Salles-Papou, director of LFI’s Institut La Boétie training school, published a lengthy rebuttal in Contretemps.
The exchange between philosopher Frédéric Lordon and La France Insoumise raises questions central to ecosocialist strategy internationally: whether electoral left formations can genuinely challenge capitalism, and what distinguishes rhetorical anticapitalism from the real thing.
In October 2025, the French philosopher and economist Frédéric Lordon published a provocative essay asking whether La France Insoumise (LFI, France Unbowed) — France’s main radical left formation — deserves to call itself anticapitalist. His answer: not yet, and perhaps not seriously.
Founded by Jean-Luc Mélenchon in 2016, the movement took 22% in the first round of the 2022 presidential election — narrowly missing the runoff against Marine Le Pen. It anchors the Nouveau Front Populaire (NFP, New Popular Front), the left coalition that unexpectedly won the most seats in the 2024 legislative elections. Its programme, L’Avenir en commun (The Future in Common), combines ecosocialism, a Sixth Republic constitution, retirement at 60, and exit from EU fiscal constraints. LFI represents the most significant left-of-social-democracy formation in Western Europe with a realistic prospect of governmental power.
Lordon’s essay sparked substantial debate. Antoine Salles-Papou, director of LFI’s Institut La Boétie training school, published a lengthy rebuttal in Contretemps.
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