# Mélenchon backs student protests as violence erupts

> France's far-left presidential candidate doubles down on supporting school blockades despite accusations he is inciting unrest.
- Title: Mélenchon backs student protests as violence erupts · POLITICO
- Summary: France's far-left presidential candidate doubles down on supporting school blockades despite accusations he is inciting unrest. Jean-Luc Mélenchon urged…
- Keywords: jean-luc mélenchon, france unbowed, student protests, school blockades, french presidential election, education funding, youth voters, politics, world, Mélenchon, backs, student
- Source: POLITICO — https://politico.eu/article/france-jean-luc-melenchon-doubles-down-student-protests-despite-violent-clashes
- Published: 2026-10-06T02:00:00+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: jean-luc mélenchon, france unbowed, student protests, school blockades, french presidential election, education funding, youth voters, politics, world
## Mélenchon calls for more protests
Far-left presidential candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon urged supporters to join nationwide protests on Tuesday backing students blockading high schools, despite accusations he instigated violence.
## Blockades spread across France
The blockades have taken place at four hundred to five hundred high schools, Education Minister Edouard Geffray said, about ten percent of the total in France. Vandalism or arson occurred at twenty four protests last week.
## Mélenchon compares movement to 1968
Mélenchon said France is witnessing the most powerful movement of high school and college students since May nineteen sixty-eight, the massive demonstrations almost sixty years ago that fundamentally reshaped French society.

> Our country is witnessing the most powerful movement of high school and college students it has seen since May 1968
## Government accuses Mélenchon of inciting unrest
Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu's office said the government and intelligence agencies shared the assessment that France Unbowed and its ideological allies helped foment the student protests. Mélenchon called the allegation absurd.
## Mélenchon sees political opportunity
In a blog post, Mélenchon said the government's focus on France Unbowed earned the party a significant surge in popularity in high schools. A Cluster seventeen poll showed forty seven percent of respondents younger than thirty five planned to vote for him.

> It earned us a significant surge in popularity in high schools, where we were already well-received.
## Violence threatens Mélenchon's wider appeal
Images of high schools ablaze and clashes between police and protesters threaten to hurt Mélenchon's standing with the wider electorate. Seventy three percent of voters said there was little to no chance they would ever vote for him.
## Key takeaway

Jean-Luc Mélenchon urged supporters to join nationwide student protests despite government claims he is inciting violence, as he seeks to consolidate youth voters ahead of next year's presidential election.