Two months of the legislative elections, the Republicans found themselves on Tuesday, April 26 during a strategic council to determine their position vis-à-vis Emmanuel Macron for the next election.
Unanimity, minus two. Weakened by their score obtained in the first round of the presidential election – 4.8% of the votes in favor of Valérie Pécresse – the Republicans (LRs) found themselves on Tuesday, April 26 during a strategic advice to determine their positioning in view of the legislative elections. With a question: Is it necessary to join the rally advocated by Emmanuel Macron and desired by Nicolas Sarkozy, or must stay in the opposition?
At this meeting, a motion was adopted to affirm: “Our political family carries its own voice” of an independent and popular right, which must exist by itself “. “We refuse the logic of the single party at the disposal of the President of the Republic”, adds this text adopted unanimously, minus two abstentions, those of the boss of the members LR, Damien Abad, and that of the Mayor of the Garenne-Colombes and candidate at Congress last fall, Philippe Juvin.
“I believe that government parties must work together,” said Juvin upon his arrival at the LR headquarters, before the strategic committee. Mr. Abad, who did not express himself, was suspected of the party to cooperate with the re-elected president on Sunday.
But Tuesday, the party president, Christian Jacob, was firm at the end of the meeting. “There is no double belonging, there will never be” and “we can not be the Republicans and presidential majority,” he hammered before the press. As in 2017, LR candidates to the legislative will have to sign a “commitment” ensuring that they will sit “in a group [at the meeting] which is totally independent” Macronists.
lr will remain “force of proposal”, and “if reforms go in common sense, our parliamentary group will take responsibility and vote,” said Jacob. But “if they do not go, we will be in the opposition”.
“Courage”
Since the first round of the presidential election, the party remains divided on the strategy to follow. The Treasurer of LR, Daniel Fasquelle, had pleaded last week for “demanding and attentive” support in Emmanuel Macron with regard to “the measures it will have to take for France to stand up”, and in order to “gather the country in An ambitious project “.
This support “is not a rallying but marks a desire to act in the dialogue with the President of the Republic,” then tried to correct Mr. Fasquelle. But the reactions had not launched. “If there is a bit of energy in Daniel Fasquelle, he will be able to become Treasurer of the Licks Committee in Emmanuel Macron”, launched the number three of LR, Aurélien Pradié, on Twitter. “If there is a bit of courage to Aurélien Pradier [sic] that he calls me rather than insulting on social networks,” replied the mayor of the Touquet. Response of the Secretary General of LR: “No. Not wanting. Sorry.”
The last president of the right party, Nicolas Sarkozy, had also pleaded in favor of the desired gathering by Emmanuel Macron, during the between-tours. According to him, “a new era looks [who] will require profound changes” and “get out of habits and partisan reflexes”. “The loyalty to the values of the Republican Right and our culture of government must lead us to respond to the call to the rally of Emmanuel Macron for the presidential election,” he said in a communiqué issued on the networks on April 12th. This position had been very criticized in a part of the Republicans, some of them, like Vice President LR, Gilles Platret, even feeling that “it may be the moment when the Republican right will separate from Nicolas Sarkozy “.