Thank you very much for this article. I am a candidate for the Animalist Party in the upcoming legislative elections in France (although not very invested in the party otherwise) and took the liberty of sharing this article with other candidates having an affinity with EA. I have not yet taken the time to try to evaluate even roughly the impact of the Animalist Party in France, but I had the impression that during this presidential election, due to the decent score of the party in the European elections and the work of some associations (notably L214), the issue of animal welfare was much more discussed, with many candidates signing a charter of measures in favor of animals.
This being said, the format of legislative elections in France makes it very unlikely that a deputy from the animalist party will ever be elected, and perhaps limits our ability to negotiate with the other parties. In the European elections, on the other hand, we only need to obtain 5% to win a seat in parliament, which is much more attainable and has already been done by other animalist parties in Europe.
“This being said, the format of legislative elections in France makes it very unlikely that a deputy from the animalist party will ever be elected, and perhaps limits our ability to negotiate with the other parties.”
This makes some sense, as unfortunate as it is. Part of the motivation for other parties being willing to negotiate with you or adopt their own incrementally pro-animal policies is based on how worried they are that they might lose a seat to your party. If they’re not at all worried, this limits your influence.
But I wouldn’t say it entirely voids your influence. The more votes you receive, the more it shows other parties that people care about animals enough to vote accordingly. If they want to try and gain some of those votes to beat out other opponents from major parties, they may still adopt some pro-animal policies if they think it might mean getting elected. I think it’s still possible to have some influence in systems where minor parties are unlikely to get elected.
“I think it’s still possible to have some influence in systems where minor parties are unlikely to get elected.”
Thats good news Michael Dello If i may ask what your strategy would be if you were running a campaign in a ‘blue-ribbon’ National Party electorate? eg New England region in NSW :)
Also, how best could a small number of AJP volunteers be used effectively?
Thank you for offering your thoughts. It’s great to hear about similar work in other countries.
I read on Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Animalist_Party) that the Animalist Party got 2.16% in the 2019 European Parliament. Is that right? It seems like a solid result and similar to the results the Animal Justice Party typically gets in Australia—and, as you say, a way to build the legitimacy of animal-related issues.
Good luck for some positive outcomes in the future elections, both French and EU. I’ll keep an eye on the results!
Thank you very much for this article. I am a candidate for the Animalist Party in the upcoming legislative elections in France (although not very invested in the party otherwise) and took the liberty of sharing this article with other candidates having an affinity with EA. I have not yet taken the time to try to evaluate even roughly the impact of the Animalist Party in France, but I had the impression that during this presidential election, due to the decent score of the party in the European elections and the work of some associations (notably L214), the issue of animal welfare was much more discussed, with many candidates signing a charter of measures in favor of animals.
This being said, the format of legislative elections in France makes it very unlikely that a deputy from the animalist party will ever be elected, and perhaps limits our ability to negotiate with the other parties. In the European elections, on the other hand, we only need to obtain 5% to win a seat in parliament, which is much more attainable and has already been done by other animalist parties in Europe.
“This being said, the format of legislative elections in France makes it very unlikely that a deputy from the animalist party will ever be elected, and perhaps limits our ability to negotiate with the other parties.”
This makes some sense, as unfortunate as it is. Part of the motivation for other parties being willing to negotiate with you or adopt their own incrementally pro-animal policies is based on how worried they are that they might lose a seat to your party. If they’re not at all worried, this limits your influence.
But I wouldn’t say it entirely voids your influence. The more votes you receive, the more it shows other parties that people care about animals enough to vote accordingly. If they want to try and gain some of those votes to beat out other opponents from major parties, they may still adopt some pro-animal policies if they think it might mean getting elected. I think it’s still possible to have some influence in systems where minor parties are unlikely to get elected.
“I think it’s still possible to have some influence in systems where minor parties are unlikely to get elected.”
Thats good news Michael Dello If i may ask what your strategy would be if you were running a campaign in a ‘blue-ribbon’ National Party electorate? eg New England region in NSW :)
Also, how best could a small number of AJP volunteers be used effectively?
Thank you for offering your thoughts. It’s great to hear about similar work in other countries.
I read on Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Animalist_Party) that the Animalist Party got 2.16% in the 2019 European Parliament. Is that right? It seems like a solid result and similar to the results the Animal Justice Party typically gets in Australia—and, as you say, a way to build the legitimacy of animal-related issues.
Good luck for some positive outcomes in the future elections, both French and EU. I’ll keep an eye on the results!