Students in Hamilton’s Program in France recently attended a round table on the upcoming French presidential election. The event was organized by Hamilton in France on behalf of the Francophone programs at Reid Hall in Paris, where HiF is located. The roundtable attracted a full house, especially since it followed closely the first televised three-and-a-half-hour long debate of all candidates in the April 23 first round of voting.
Students emerge from Hamilton in France with more than excellent language skills. They’ve advanced in their academic disciplines, become better informed citizens of the world – and had a lot of fun along the way. Participants in the highly regarded immersion program pledge to speak no English while abroad and receive the support they need to live up to that standard.
Hervé Gardette, journalist at France Culture and host for the daily radio program “Du Grain à moudre,” moderated the discussion.
Two professors with whom Hamilton students are familiar from their classes at Institut d’Etudes Politques also participated. Nicolas Roussellier specializes in the history of political change in modern and contemporary France and is author of the recent study of the executive in France, La Force de gouverner. Le pouvoir exécutif en France XIXe-XXIe siècles. Historian Marion Gaillard specializes in Franco-German relations and European affairs.
Completing the panel was Franco-American journalist François Picard, host of the television program “The France 24 Debate” on the international news and current affairs television network, France 24.
Panelists covered a range of topics, including presentation of the 11 presidential candidates, populism, the question of voting strategically, comparisons with the United States, the executive power, and a number of fascinating “what ifs.”
