Paris (AFP)

Geneviève Darrieussecq, MoDem Minister of Veterans Affairs, is to take the head of the list supported by the presidential majority during the regional elections in New Aquitaine in the spring, corroborating sources told AFP on Tuesday.

"It is on the right track," said a government source, confirmed by a MoDem official, while the nomination has not yet been officially granted.

The head of the list in New Aquitaine was also coveted by another member of the government, the Minister LREM of Transport Jean-Baptiste Djebbari.

The duel between the two personalities had led the majority officials to fear a scenario similar to that which had punctuated the municipal campaign in Biarritz, last year, when ministers Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne and Didier Guillaume had to face each other in two competing lists before the head of state summons them to withdraw.

"This time, at least, Geneviève Darrieussecq and Jean-Baptiste Djebbari spoke to each other," notes a minister, while the two competitors have also been received in recent days by the Prime Minister, Jean Castex.

The issue of regional is the subject of multiple questions within the majority, in particular as to the strategy to be adopted in the face of many outgoing presidents, deemed "Macron-compatible".

The current president of New Aquitaine, the socialist Alain Rousset, has supporters among the marchers.

But, notes a ponte LREM, "in this region, Darrieussecq and the Modem have always favored alliances with the right", leaving, if necessary, little hope of rapprochement with the outgoing majority, including between the two rounds.

The MoDem also currently sits in opposition with the Rousset majority in the Regional Council of Nouvelle-Aquitaine.

The other heads of the presidential majority list in the regions must be appointed before the end of the year, according to several majority officials.

Geneviève Darrieussecq, a close friend of François Bayrou, was elected member of the Landes in 2017, before joining the government.

The regional elections should theoretically be held on March 14 and 21, subject to changes in the health situation.

© 2020 AFP