Estelle Jaquet, candidate for Lutte Ouvrière in the 2026 municipal elections in Nice, organized a conference focused on the situation of workers and challenging the capitalist system. She presented a list composed solely of employees to an attentive audience, arguing for the necessity of collective action to change society.
From the start of her speech, Estelle Jaquet emphasized the composition of her electoral list. “Shop assistants, home care workers, teachers, technicians or shopkeepers,” she listed, specifying that she includes “neither notables nor politicians“. According to the candidate, all these individuals share a common situation: that of surviving on insufficient income or pensions. Situations such as bills that are difficult to pay, unaffordable housing, or daily precariousness are, according to her, representative of a large portion of the population. The list also intends to reflect diversity of origins: it includes candidates from Tunisia, Italy, Morocco, and Georgia. Estelle Jaquet seized this opportunity to advocate for voting rights for all workers residing in France, including those without French nationality.
The candidate also addressed the social disparities present in the city. “Nice is often presented as a paradise for the rich,” she recalls, citing the presence of many millionaires in the region. Yet, according to her, the social reality is quite different for a large part of the population. “One in ten people in the metropolitan area lives on less than 750 euros per month,” she emphasizes, also mentioning “tens of thousands of Nice residents” waiting for social housing. However, the candidate stresses the paramount importance of work: “without the daily effort of workers, there would be no water, no electricity, no transport, no commerce.“
A critique of capitalism
During the conference, Estelle Jaquet developed a critique of the capitalist system. According to her analysis, the profits of large companies are based on the exploitation of labor.
“From all the wealth we generate, only a modest percentage is returned to us as wages,” she declares. “The other part constitutes the profits that the capitalist class appropriates for itself.” She also believes that traditional political parties do not challenge this system. “Politicians from both the right and left do not seek to inspire confidence in workers in their own strength,” she states.
For the candidate, municipal elections alone are not sufficient to change the social situation. She states: “no mayor can transform the lives of working-class people“, referring mainly to the insufficiency of financial resources within municipalities.
She therefore calls for broader engagement from the working world. “It is thanks to workers that all of society functions. If they took the reins themselves, they would be much better equipped to manage it.” Estelle Jaquet closed the conference with an encouragement to support the Lutte Ouvrière movement. However, beyond the election, the candidate particularly encouraged her audience to organize politically: “we position ourselves in favor of the idea that workers must abolish this system and manage society themselves.“
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