Clémentine Autain believes only a leftwing alliance united behind one leader can fend off the threat of a far-right president

At a busy market in Sevran, a low-income suburb north of Paris, the local MP, Clémentine Autain, was shaking hands and posing for selfies, arguing that only a left alliance could stave off the threat of a French far-right president being elected in less than 18 months.

“The French far right is high in the polls and riding an international Trumpian wave,” said Autain, 52. “Without the left uniting behind a radical project, we can’t beat them.”