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After Madelin won the leadership of the Republican Party on 24 June 1997 with 59.9% of the vote,[4] he renamed the organisation 'Liberal Democracy', and moved the party further towards economic liberalism.[5] This followed the formation of the Democratic Force (FD) by the centrist, Christian democratic component of the Union for French Democracy (UDF), leading to internal rivalry.[6]
Liberal Democracy became independent in 1998, after a split from the UDF. The immediate cause of this departure was Liberal Democracy's refusal to condemn the election of four UDF president of Regional Councils with the votes of the National Front. However, the party had already feared that a tighter UDF would be dominated by economic centrists, preventing his free-market policies being heard.[7]
Thus, Liberal Democracy voted on 16 May 1998 to become a separate party,[8] with Madelin launching the 'Ten Tough Choices' programme advocating transforming the political debate in France.[9] The economic liberals that refused to break ranks with the UDF launched the Independent Republican and Liberal Pole, which later merged with FD and the so-called 'Direct Adherents' to form the New UDF.[4]
The classical liberal platform adopted by Liberal Democracy mirrored the personal views of its founder and President, Alain Madelin.
The party advocated classical liberalism: promoting less government intervention as the solution to both economic and social problems.[5] In René Rémond's schematic of the French right, it represented the Orléanist strain.[5] In contrast to the 'advanced liberalism' of Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, which still involved social conservatism, Madelin's was more consistently classical liberal and economically similar to Thatcherism.[6][11]
On economics, DL was systematically more free-market than the UDF.[12] In 1998, the party advocated cutting spending from 50% to 45% within five years,[12] along with reducing the top income tax rate to 35%.[13] Madelin had been fired as Minister of the Economy and Finances in Alain Juppé's government for proposing cutting public sector pay and benefits.[14] As a presidential candidate in 2002, he renewed these calls, along with widespread public sector competition and privatisation.[15]
It was also more secular than the UDF's centrist, Christian democratic elements from which it split, despite being dominated by well-known Catholics.[5] Reflecting this Catholicism, the party was morally conservative,[16] if not always conservative in social policy, and also emphasised anti-corruption, thanks particularly to judge Thierry Jean-Pierre.[5] The party strongly opposed the dominance of École nationale d'administration in public life, with its MPs calling in 2002 for its funding to be halved.[17]
In foreign policy, Liberal Democracy was strongly pro-American. Madelin set himself apart from the rest of the right after September 11 attacks by advocating total support for the United States.[18]
Political support
After its split, Liberal Democracy gained about one-third of the UDF's supporters.[19] The party had significant support in rural areas.[5]
DL's supporters were overall wealthy, highly educated, and from a high socio-economic class, even compared to the New UDF.[8] 42% of DL voters earned over €22,500 a year, compared to 33% of New UDF.[8] The party was firmly backed by managers, who made up 24% of DL's voters (18% for the New UDF); only 4% of DL voters were manual workers (13% for the New UDF).[20] 50% of DL voters had high school diplomas, compared to 40% of New UDF voters.[8]
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