Paris (AFP)
Real concern or storm in a glass of water? Three months from the municipal elections, the strategy of the Republicans (LR) raises questions internally, where some in the conservative wing fear "satelliteization" vis-à-vis LREM, even if President Christian Jacob refutes any line problem.
Last week, a dozen members of the political bureau wrote to Mr. Jacob asking him to "dispel the ambiguities" on the strategy, worrying about "contradictory signals" and "counterproductive for the image" of the Republicans.
At the center of their concerns, the designation of "leaders" in several cities (Angers, Rouen, Amiens ...) charged according to them to negotiate, at the approach of the municipal elections in March, "local alliances with the candidates invested by the presidential party ".
Beyond the municipal level, these agreements could, according to them, announce others, to the departmental then to the regional. "What credibility will we have in the eyes of the French to embody a real alternation (...) in 2022?", Question these representatives of the right wing of LR as the party, in historic crisis, seeks to become audible again.
In this context, they ask for a "special political office" to "debate and decide on our electoral strategy".
In the leadership of the party, we play down. "It's a storm in a glass of water", "a lot of noise for nothing", gets annoyed Christian Jacob, who wonders about this letter "sent to the whole press" while "the line is completely decided ".
The president of the Republicans wants as proof of this unity that "most of the investiture decisions are taken unanimously", and "always by relying on the departmental federations".
- "Interference" -
"We have a very clear line: we do not support any mayors En Marche !, any more than we supported the National Rally," summarizes Mr. Jacob.
For the municipal authorities, a small dozen candidates have received double LR / LREM support: in Toulouse, Chelles, Rueil-Malmaison ... these are often outgoing mayors, and for weeks, LR has been irritated by this LREM's "scrambling strategy" which ranks behind potential winners where it is "absolutely incapable of forming teams".
But for the signatories of the letter, the speech remains "hesitant" with regard to LREM, and contrasts with that, "very firm", reserved for "members who advocate for reverse strategies".
An allusion to the exclusion, on December 11, of the young activist Erik Tegnér, close to Marion Maréchal and supporter of the "union of the rights" with the extreme right.
At LR, we dispute the idea of a double standard: "The line is the same" and "when local mayors spoke to En Marche !, we put an LR candidate against him", adds M. Jacob, giving the examples of Orleans, Vesoul, Melun ...
But for Mr. Tegnér, who was asked if he would vote for a possible candidacy for François Baroin in 2022 during his hearing, "the conservative fringe of the party no longer has any weight".
How much does this bang weigh? In October, 63% of the members had voted for Christian Jacob, 16% for Guillaume Larrivé (who today "does not want to feed the quarrel machine") and 21% for Julien Aubert, one of the signatories of the letter, who will be received Wednesday morning by Mr. Jacob.
Even if everyone in this conservative wing does not want a rapprochement with the far right, the question arises, especially in the South. After Béziers in 2014, a new list of right-wing unions was launched in Sète, led by the former boss of the Republicans of Hérault, Sébastien Pacull.
Opposite, LR chose François Commeinhes, supported by LREM.
The question of the union of the rights, for a party which sees its themes preempted by LREM, has in fact been hovering for months: in June, a dinner organized by Mme Maréchal with several elected LR after the European debacle (8.5% voices) had already sown discord.
Three of the guests - the Senator from Val-d'Oise Sébastien Meurant, the deputy for Ain Xavier Breton and the regional councilor for the Pays de la Loire Sébastien Pilard - are also among the signatories of the letter to Mr. Jacob.
© 2019 AFP