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This article argues that the French "no" to the European Constitutional Treaty (2005) has deep-seated causes. The vote took place in the wake of a long & steady decline in popular support for European integration. Both "affective" support & "utilitarian" approval have been on the wane for the past ten to fifteen years. Owing to the specificities of European policies, this decline has been far more precipitous on the left of the political spectrum & among the "working class." Applying the "policy appraisal" model, the author finds that the best way to explain the French rejection is to see the growing dissatisfaction of the left wing & the working class as a consequence of their disapproval of the main lines of European integration & policies, particularly market liberalization (goods, services & labor) & competition & monetary policies. Hence the need for a "social democratic shift" in European policies to bridge the growing gulf between the European Union & its electorate. Adapted from the source document.