'I'm looking into becoming French national' – Catalans in France 'dread' potential far right victory

Some of the 51,000 Catalan people residing in France have expressed "dread" for a potential victory of Marine Le Pen's National Rally in the French legislative election that will take place between this Sunday and the next one.

Talking to the Catalan News Agency (ACN), Jesús Crespo, a man who has spent the past 15 years in Paris, said: "We are still foreigners in a foreign country. I had already considered it, but now I am looking into becoming a French national."

He expresses "surprise" at the fact that National Rally performed so well in the recent European election. "You see that one in three have voted for them, and the usual reaction is to wonder where they are," he added.

Crespo said he was concerned at the fact that the second round of the vote falls in July, which could prompt a lower turnout especially among those opposing Marine Le Pen and Jordan Bardella's political force.

Likewise, Chloé González, a Catalan woman who has dual citizenship, told ACN that she is going through this electoral process with "fear" at the fact that the far right could reach power.

She believes she is not among the clearest targets of National Rally, but said: "If Catalans are afraid, is for other reasons, because we have friends who are not European, and we are concerned about the possible repression that a far right win can mean."

'Criminalizing or casting doubts' on foreigners' contribution to growth

Yet, the Catalan government delegate in France, Eva Doya le Besnerais, said that those with a dual citizenship could also be affected by the results of the upcoming election, since a cabinet with National Rally members could exclude them from key positions in the French administration such as national security or secret services.

For her, this possibility which has already been hinted by the far-right party, is part of "a general idea of criminalizing or casting a doubt" on the foreigners' contribution to the country growth.

Doya thinks that making sure they can continue taking part in the political, democratic and cultural life of France must be a priority, so that they can do it "with full rights and freedoms."

In an interview with ACN, Doya did not disclose what the Catalan executive approach would be with a National Rally government, but said that topics such as the green or feminist agendas could no longer be part of the cooperation between administrations.