Not exactly the political equivalent of splitting the atom

A couple of weeks ago Karl Pfefferkorn wrote an interesting Brussels Signal piece on the unpopularity of Chancellor Merz of Germany and President Macron of France. Interesting because it highlights a common problem with limited, technocrat leaders who isolate themselves from the populations they supposedly serve.

Emperors lost in their Labyrinths, unwilling to listen to the common people

If one factor links the dire unpopularity of Chancellor Merz and President Macron, it is their political insularity. Neither engages freely with their disaffected voters, and neither has a close cadre of advisors willing to present unwelcome news. Macron is a creature of the French elite and has never “pressed the flesh” with the commoners in anything but carefully staged events. Merz retains the grandiose hubris of private capital, but has not cultivated a circle of seasoned confidants to keep him politically grounded. Every leader needs aides willing to dispute the boss and suggest better political alternatives. Merz and Macron prefer to remain cocooned within the trappings of high office, wilfully deaf to the angry complaints of the commoners.

Compare them to Indian PM Narendra Modi. After his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) lost its parliamentary majority in 2024, it roared back last week with a landslide victory in the West Bengal heartland of the previously dominant Trinamool Congress party. How did Modi engineer this dramatic turnaround? According to the Financial Times, Modi has a “relentless focus on grassroots issues … [and a] determination to stay close to voter concerns.” The Eurasia Group’s Pramit Pal Chaudhuri tells us, “Modi will often bring in people with differing views and have them argue … He is very focused on ensuring he gets dissenting opinions [and] multiple sources of information.” A brilliant innovation: Respond to popular discontent by … soliciting dissenting opinions and staying close to voter concerns. Not exactly the political equivalent of splitting the atom, but apparently far beyond the political skills of Macron or Merz.

The whole piece is well worth reading as we in the UK wait with weary resignation to see if Prime Minister Keir Starmer is ousted by someone cast in the same sequestered mould.