Macrons popularity hits new low amid French protests: poll

French President Emmanuel Macron and Prime Minister Edouard Philippe’s approval ratings hit new lows as the “yellow vest” protests gathered pace, according to an Ifop-Fiducial poll for Paris Match and Sud Radio published on Tuesday.

Macron’s approval rating fell to 23 percent in the poll conducted late last week, down six points on the previous month. Philippe’s rating fell 10 points to 26 percent.

The president’s score matches the low charted by his predecessor Francois Hollande in late 2013, according to Paris Match. Hollande was then considered to be the least popular leader in modern French history.

The first “yellow vest” demonstrations were held on Nov. 17 to contest fuel-tax rises, and have since evolved into a broader protest movement and anti-Macron uprising.

Protests in Paris on Dec. 1 turned particularly violent, with the Arc de Triomphe defaced and avenues off Paris’s Champs Elysees suffering mass vandalism.