BFMTV SURVEY – According to a new Elabe survey, confidence in the police is in the majority in the population, but there are significant disparities according to age or political opinions.
In recent days, the news has been marked by the demonstrations against the pension reform which continue and by the events that have occurred in Sainte-Soline around the project to build “mega-basins”.
Mobilizations marked by a climate of strong tensions and sometimes enamelled with violence on the part of demonstrators, but the gendarmes and police are also accused of disproportionate use of force.
According to a new survey “L’Opinion en direct” conducted by the Elabe Institute for BFMTV, 62% of French people believe that the violence is marginal and the fact of slippage by a minority of police officers.
47% of young people see violence as a general phenomenon
Conversely, 37% consider that they are not marginal and are representative of a more general phenomenon within the police.
The voters of Emmanuel Macron (75%) and to a lesser extent of Marine Le Pen (64%) believe that the violence is marginal, while the voters of Jean-Luc Mélenchon see it mainly (58%) as a more systemic phenomenon. .
In terms of age, violence is mostly perceived as marginal phenomena, except among the youngest (18-24 years old), who are very divided. 47% of them see it as a general phenomenon against 52%.
More than one in two Mélenchon voters do not trust the police
Nearly seven out of ten French people say they trust the police, compared to 31% who say they don’t trust them. In comparison, this is a lower level of trust than the army (80%) and the gendarmerie (76%), but clearly higher than the justice system where mistrust is the majority.
From a political point of view, a large majority of Emmanuel Macron voters (82%) and to a lesser extent Marine Le Pen (71%) have confidence in the police. But conversely, the majority of Jean-Luc Mélenchon’s voters (57% of them) have no confidence.
From a generational point of view, trust in the police is higher among those aged 35 and over (72%) than among those under 35 (57%).
8 out of 10 French people condemn the violence
Regarding the recent violence and clashes with the police, the vast majority of French people condemn these acts. Indeed, whether for mega-basins or retreats, 8 out of 10 French people condemn the violence.
If most categories and electorates do not understand the use of violence, nearly one in two Jean-Mélenchon voters say they understand them (46% for the mega-basin, 48% for the pension reform).
In one week, this understanding of the violence that took place during the demonstrations against the pension reform fell in all categories of the population and electorates to reach 31%.
Basically, opinion on the subject of mega-ponds is divided. 50% of French people are opposed to their implementation, including 35% quite opposed and 15% very opposed. Conversely, 49% are in favour, including 40% quite in favor and 9% very in favour.
Sample of 1005 people representative of residents of mainland France aged 18 and over. The representativeness of the sample was ensured according to the quota method applied to the following variables: sex, age and profession of the interviewee after stratification by region and category of agglomeration. Questioning by Internet from March 28 to 29, 2023. Field carried out entirely after the mobilization day of March 28 (launch after 8 p.m.).
