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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
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Alexander Hurst

Jean-Luc Mélenchon will win young French voters – until they realise the size of his Russia blind spot

Jean-Luc Melenchon at a demonstration in Paris, 29 September 2026
Jean-Luc Melenchon at a demonstration in Paris, 29 September 2026 Photograph: Apaydin Alain/ABACA/Shutterstock

Théodore Abitbol is a self-described “militant antifascist,” with degrees in political science and comparative literature, and a bookshelf that ranges from the gender and queer theory of bell hooks to the anti-capitalist social analysis of the Marxist theorist Mike Davis.

The 34-year-old is a regular participant in pro-Palestine protests, and has a decade of full-time activism under his belt: unions, strikes, protests, civil disobedience and vast protest encampments used to block construction projects, known in France as ZAD – for “zone à défendre”.

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