Hunger strike

Lassalle undertook a 39-day hunger strike in March and April 2006, in protest at a threat to jobs in his constituency. Japanese firm Toyal, which owned a paint factory near Accous in the Vallée d'Aspe and employed 150 of Lassalle's constituents, announced plans to open a factory 60 km away. The firm claimed that this relocation of its investment would not result in the closure of the Accous site, but Lassalle's concerns were not assuaged and he embarked on a hunger strike on 7 March.

The strike ended on 14 April, when Toyal offered an assurance to Minister of the Interior Nicolas Sarkozy that the factory would not close and that it would continue investment in the area before expanding elsewhere. Earlier the same day, Lassalle had been admitted to hospital in Garches, in the western suburbs of Paris, prompting intervention by President Jacques Chirac, Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin and Sarkozy. Lassalle had lost 21 kilograms (46 lb) of weight over the course of the strike.^[4]

2017 presidential campaign

In 2017, Lassalle ran for President of France. He received support from the Association des maires ruraux de France (Association of rural mayors of France). His platform was centre-right, with tenets of agrarianism, protectionism and ecological preservation. His campaign spots included, among other things, him mowing his lawn shirtless. In the 4 April 2017 televised debate on BFM TV, he introduced himself as the "son of a shepherd, brother of a shepherd, [former shepherd] myself". After he arrived late at the television studio, several news outlets took a critical stance at his performance.^[5][6] However, following the debate he quickly became the most searched candidate on the Google search engine.^[7]

Lassalle ultimately received 435,301 votes, 1.21% of the electorate, which ranked him seventh out of eleven candidates. Lassalle's support disproportionately came from rural and southwest constituencies. His campaign cost €230,000, the least of any candidate. The bank from which he borrowed the money took his credit card as a guarantee, forcing his mother-in-law to provide groceries for the family during Lassalle's campaign.^[8]

Aftermath of the 2017 election

In the 2017 legislative election, Résistons! fielded 21 parliamentary candidates, but only Lassalle was elected. In a 2017 interview with Jean-Jacques Bourdin, Lassalle stated President Emmanuel Macron had offered him to be Minister of Territorial Cohesion but he turned the offer down, citing policy differences.^[8]  

In November 2018, Lassalle disrupted the National Assembly by wearing a yellow vest in solidarity with the yellow vest movement, resulting in a €1,500 fine. Lassalle explored a candidacy for the 2019 European Parliament election, on a platform of Eurosceptism and "a Europe of nations and peoples", but ultimately did not stand in that election, citing financial difficulties.

2022 presidential campaign

On 16 March 2021, Lassalle stated his intention to run again for the presidency in the 2022 presidential election.^[9] The Constitutional Council approved his second presidential candidacy on 17 February 2022.^[10] In early 2022, Lassalle appeared doubtful about his prospects, as he said: "Macron will be reelected as things stand. The financial powers that have taken over our country have already decided that".^[11] A few days later, he publicly stated he was thinking about withdrawing his candidacy for the presidency, citing a lack of sufficient media coverage. He openly criticised his treatment in mainstream media after he failed to be invited to a political evening show on TF1.^[12] Lassalle ultimately received just over 3 percent of the vote, a significant improvement over his 2017 showing, with his strongest support coming from Corsica, Nouvelle-Aquitaine and Occitanie. Consequently, it is also in Occitania that his party will have the most candidates in the legislative elections.

Lassalle received more votes than Socialist Party candidate Anne Hidalgo. He made no endorsement in the second round, saying he trusts the French people to do what is right.^[13] On the day of the vote, he published a video recorded at the polling station in Lourdios-Ichère in which he acts as if he is about to vote, then retracts and stated his refusal to participate in the vote. In doing so, he violated the French electoral code, which prohibites "messages of an electoral propaganda nature on the eve and on election day", leading to all ballots in Lourdios-Ichère being invalidated.^[14]

He did not stand to defend his seat in the 2022 French legislative election.