Far-right Candidate Quits France Polls Over Nazi Cap

Other political parties are aiming to prevent the far right from taking power in France for the first time since Nazi Germany occupied the country during World War II.

RN candidate Ludivine Daoudi on Sunday came third in her district in the northwestern region of Calvados, but a photo of her allegedly wearing a cap from the Luftwaffe air force of Nazi Germany sparked controversy online.

“Her candidacy will be removed from today,” local RN party official Philippe Chapron told the France Bleu radio broadcaster on Tuesday.

“She has not denied anything. She took the photo several years ago,” he added, describing it as being in “bad taste”.

Chapron did not immediately respond to AFP’s request for comment and efforts to reach Daoudi were unsuccessful.

Left-wing candidate Emma Fourreau, who came second in the district and will be challenging a right-wing contender for the seat in parliament, said Daoudi backing out was a “victory”.

“Several sources who knew… Daoudi, including an old friend, had sent us this screenshot from Facebook,” she said, adding the image had been wiped from her social media.

Three-time presidential candidate Marine Le Pen has tried to clean up the image of the RN, a party co-founded by a former member of the Waffen-SS and her father Jean-Marie, who was convicted of Holocaust denial.

But “despite their ties in the National Assembly, it’s still a racist party that references Nazi Germany,” Fourreau said.

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