Jean-Luc Mélenchon, La France insoumise's candidate for the 2027 French presidential election, told a rally in Clermont-Ferrand on October 11, 2026, that he would abolish Parcoursup, the platform used to allocate university places, calling it an "ignominy." He also proposed lowering the voting age to 16 and restructuring vocational education, framing the pledges as a response to ongoing student protests.
Jean-Luc Mélenchon, the La France insoumise (LFI) candidate for France's 2027 presidential election, addressed a rally at the Zénith d'Auvergne in Cournon-d'Auvergne, near Clermont-Ferrand, on Sunday, October 11, 2026. According to franceinfo.fr, ici.fr and sudradio.fr, the venue was filled to its roughly 10,000-seat capacity, with additional supporters gathering outside to watch the speech on a giant screen.
Pledge to abolish Parcoursup
Mélenchon focused a large part of his speech on Parcoursup, the online platform French high-school graduates use to apply for university and other higher-education places. He called the system an "ignominy" and said it should be abolished, according to franceinfo.fr and sudradio.fr. He also rejected selective admission criteria at universities more broadly, according to francemag.fr.
Parcoursup doit être aboli.
— Jean-Luc Mélenchon, cited by sudradio.fr
Franceinfo.fr reported that Mélenchon blamed a series of former education and government officials — including ex-education minister Jean-Michel Blanquer, and former prime ministers Édouard Philippe and Gabriel Attal — for what he described as systemic problems in France's secondary and higher-education system.
Vocational education and voting age
Francemag.fr reported that Mélenchon also proposed extending the professional baccalaureate track to four years and creating a continuous pathway from the CAP vocational certificate to a professional bachelor's degree, allowing students to advance progressively between qualifications.
Abolish Parcoursup and oppose selective university admissions (franceinfo.fr, sudradio.fr, francemag.fr)
Extend the professional baccalaureate to a four-year course and link CAP certificates to professional bachelor's degrees (francemag.fr)
Lower the voting age to 16 (franceinfo.fr, ici.fr, sudradio.fr)
Restore the legal retirement age to 60 (franceinfo.fr)
On voting rights, Mélenchon argued that 16-year-olds already vote in labor-tribunal elections and can be held criminally responsible, and said they should therefore be allowed to vote in general elections as full citizens, according to franceinfo.fr. Ici.fr and sudradio.fr reported the same proposal, framing it as a call for greater "respect" toward young people.
Rally held amid student protests
Several outlets linked the rally to ongoing student and high-school mobilizations in France. Francemag.fr reported that Mélenchon praised high-school students for showing significant political and union experience. Sudradio.fr described the event as explicitly intended to back the student movement.
Ici.fr noted that Mélenchon had finished first in Clermont-Ferrand during the 2022 presidential election, and that the October 11 rally came at full indoor capacity. Sudradio.fr and ici.fr both cited an Ipsos poll showing Mélenchon had the support of between 41% and 43% among 18-to-24-year-olds who said they were certain to vote.
Beyond education and youth policy, francemag.fr reported that Mélenchon proposed supplementing gross domestic product with additional indicators — including healthy life expectancy, educational inequality, wage equality, pollution exposure and biodiversity — to assess government performance. Sudradio.fr also reported that he addressed cancelling French public debt held by the European Central Bank.
Questions
What is Parcoursup?
Parcoursup is the online platform French high-school graduates use to apply for places at universities and other higher-education institutions. Mélenchon said at the Clermont-Ferrand rally that the platform should be abolished, calling it an "ignominy," according to franceinfo.fr and sudradio.fr.
What voting age does Mélenchon propose?
He proposed lowering the voting age from 18 to 16, arguing that 16-year-olds already vote in labor-tribunal elections and can face criminal responsibility, so they should be able to vote as citizens, according to franceinfo.fr.
How many people attended the Clermont-Ferrand rally?
Franceinfo.fr, ici.fr and sudradio.fr reported that the Zénith d'Auvergne venue, with a capacity of roughly 10,000, was full, with an overflow crowd watching outside on a giant screen.
What other policies did Mélenchon mention besides education?
He said he would restore the legal retirement age to 60, according to franceinfo.fr, and, per sudradio.fr, raised the idea of cancelling French public debt held by the European Central Bank.
Why did Mélenchon hold this rally now?
The event came amid ongoing student and high-school protests in France; francemag.fr and sudradio.fr reported that Mélenchon framed his proposals as a response to that youth mobilization ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
How the world is telling it
FrenchFrench outlets (franceinfo.fr, ici.fr, sudradio.fr, francemag.fr) framed the rally primarily around crowd size and Mélenchon's bid to position himself as the candidate of French youth ahead of 2027, giving heavy attention to his attacks on Parcoursup and linking his proposals directly to ongoing student protests in France.
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