With Agnès Buzyn, has LREM reshuffled the cards in Paris?

• After the surprise abandonment of Benjamin Griveaux this Friday, LREM had to urgently find a new head to lead the municipal campaign in Paris.
• Agnes Buzyn leaves the Ministry of Health to take the reins of the macronist team to conquer the capital, while polls have not been encouraging for the presidential party for several months.
• Will it be able to relaunch the campaign of the presidential majority in the capital, as LREM ensures?

A doctor to save LREM in Paris? Emmanuel Macron's party was already struggling for municipal elections in the capital due to the dissent of Cédric Villani. In 72 hours, he also had to compensate for the withdrawal of his official candidate on Friday. After the publication of videos of a sexual nature attributed to him, Benjamin Griveaux threw in the towel.

After increasing the number of meetings on Friday and then on Saturday, it was Sunday afternoon that the LREM executive board decided for the benefit of Agnès Buzyn. "It's a natural and unanimous choice", assures one of the members of the body, Thomas Mesnier. A decision that also pleased the parties allied to LREM in the capital, according to the deputy for Charente. "It will be able to gather beyond our ranks," he predicts.

Macronist in search of "a new breath"

The MoDem had ended up supporting Benjamin Griveaux on January 28, but its boss, François Bayrou, would have preferred a "plan B". In March, he had already blown the name of Agnès Buzyn to lead the LREM-MoDem common list in the European elections and campaigned for the minister in the context of municipal elections. After the Parisian coup, the wishes of the MoDem are granted, and Agnes Buzyn finds herself propelled to conquer the capital. As for walkers, we have redoubled our enthusiasm on social networks and TV platforms since Sunday evening.

“His arrival breathes new life into our campaign. She is in a position to achieve a great feat, ”smiles Thomas Mesnier. "I'm going to win," said the former health minister, who left the government to devote himself entirely to this four-week campaign.

Bad polls

The challenge looks complicated: before Benjamin Griveaux threw in the towel, he was only third in the polls, behind the outgoing socialist mayor Anne Hidalgo and the candidate Les Républicains, Rachida Dati.

"This is a new deal one month before the election," notes Frédéric Dabi, Deputy Director General of Ifop. "Admittedly, the personality of Agnès Buzyn arouses fewer negative judgments than that of Benjamin Griveaux but, in our last barometer, it is credited with 36% of negative opinions, while a third surveyed does not know it", weighs the opinion specialist.

Rating of popularity of Agnès #Buzyn in February, nominated candidate #LREM at the #MairiedeParis to replace B. #Griveaux

36% negative
31% do not know
29% positive

27th / 50 political figures
6th in government

Ranking of personalities ➡️ https://t.co/MEArzNLGQ7 pic.twitter.com/yQA9xWfBeH

Among the other candidates for mayor of Paris, we display a form of serenity. "Choosing a minister who knows nothing about Paris files, that does not worry us more than that," mocked the first secretary of the Socialist Federation of Paris, Rémi Féraud, Hidalgo side. "This designation does not change anything compared to our campaign", evacuated in the Villani team. "There is a desire to nationalize the campaign by investing a minister, to avoid going into substantive debates," we tackle in the entourage of the mathematician.

A possible convergence with Villani?

Will she be able to save her party from an announced defeat in a capital, however very macronist? LREM obtained excellent scores in Paris in the presidential and European elections. "His roadmap is simple: bring this electorate back to Hidalgo or Dati," observes Frédéric Dabi. "It seems complicated in such a short period of time ..."

Especially since the former minister has other handicaps: a risk of an inconsistent trial, since she ruled out any municipal candidacy Friday on France Inter, because of a "very busy agenda", and a potential sanction vote against government policy or its management of the hospital crisis.

Municipal in Paris: when Agnès Buzyn said (two days ago on France Inter) that she had "a too busy agenda" to be a candidatehttps: //t.co/EGPMPz3sjM pic.twitter.com/o2MIgcgNik

To put the odds on her side, Agnès Buzyn reached out this Monday to Cédric Villani, to whom she phoned in the early afternoon. "We reminded him of our conditions to consider possible convergence," said the entourage of the dissident candidate. A convergence of the two macronist candidacies would already be a victory for the former Minister of Health.

Health

"The future of Paris is close to my heart and I will be there," assures Agnès Buzyn, in tears

Politics

Municipal in Paris: Agnès Buzyn (LREM) launches its campaign, Olivier Véran appointed Minister of Health

• Olivier Véran
• Paris
• LREM
• municipal
• Health
• Agnes Buzyn