# Jean-Luc Mélenchon Topic: [[Topics/France 2026 Student Protests and Riots/France 2026 Student Protests and Riots|France 2026 Student Protests and Riots]] - **Who:** founder and leader of La France insoumise (LFI); third in the 2022 presidential election. - **Role in this topic:** Pueyo's claim 8 names "Melenchon's LFI party" as pushing the protests toward riots. Lecornu said LFI "instrumentalisé" the movement in Val-de-Marne; security sources say LFI did not take part in the violence. Le Monde (Oct 19) reported he stood by his split with the rest of the political spectrum while under fire over the protests ⚠️ (headline only). - See [[Topics/France 2026 Student Protests and Riots/Politics, LFI and Immigration|Politics, LFI and Immigration]].