Paris (AFP)
MEP LR Brice Hortefeux on Tuesday called Guillaume Larrivé and Julien Aubert to withdraw their candidacies for the presidency of the party, on behalf of "the union" and for the benefit of Christian Jacob.
"I appeal for the union to be built around Christian Jacob, because the answer to the disappointment of May (in the European elections) can not be the division in September but must be the union now", he announced on BFMTV.
The former minister of Nicolas Sarkozy wishes that MM. Larrivé and Aubert "withdraw their candidacy but do not deny their beliefs so far".
Still traumatized by their defeat in the European elections, the Republicans are preparing their internal election of October 12, with three candidates in the running: Christian Jacob, MP for Seine-et-Marne, Guillaume Larrivé, MP Yonne, and Julien Aubert, MP of Vaucluse.
"When there is an internal competition, there are inevitably dissensions that lead to divisions that themselves cause wounds extraordinarily difficult to heal," said Mr. Hortefeux.
"Guillaume Peltier, who was also hoping to be a candidate, understood this need to offer the image of unity and assembly," he said, citing his renunciation as an example.
"Christian Jacob combines both the experience, the recognition of elected officials and parliamentarians in particular and an emotional feeling with the militants," he said.
"We must gather and build around Christian Jacob this unity because our activists, our sympathizers aspire to the union," he added.
Julien Aubert replied on Twitter that "the union will be after a clear internal debate and respectful of everyone". "This is the first essential step of a reconquest of the French and responsibilities.Remove democracy by withdrawing my candidacy would be counterproductive," he said.
© 2019 AFP