Marseilles (AFP)
The outgoing president of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, Renaud Muselier, head of the list for the next regional supported by Les Républicains (LR), called Thursday for a large gathering around his candidacy, believing "in good sense" that the majority presidential support.
"Today, there is an LREM list piloted by a member of the government", noted the elected during the first press conference of his campaign, with reference to the declared candidacy of the secretary of state in charge of people disabled Sophie Cluzel.
"It is up to the presidential majority to decide whether it wishes to maintain this list or to give me its support," he said, adding that "common sense", according to him, "would like the presidential majority (him) provides support ".
"I am LR and I find myself politically in the right and the center. But I will politically get out of the shackles of the political apparatus. So, there will be no agreement of apparatus. Given the stakes, I want to build the best possible team for the region and we will choose the best wherever they come from, ”said Mr. Muselier.
In the morning, the elected official who formalized his candidacy on Tuesday, had already explained on BFM TV / RMC that he was ready to open his majority of "reasonable Greens (...) to the repented of the National Front".
"I know that there are skills in the presidential majority that can help us in the crisis as in the way out of the crisis. We can add them together, we gain by bringing together and we pride ourselves on surpassing ourselves. In any case, I'm ready, because it's the region first and foremost, "he hammered.
The leader of the regional right praised the results of his term of office alongside the heavyweights of the region, Christian Estrosi, mayor of Nice and former president of the region to whom he succeeded, Martine Vassal, president of the Aix-en-Provence metropolis. Marseille Provence and the Bouches-du-Rhône department and Hubert Falco, president of the Toulon-Provence-Méditerranée metropolis and mayor of Toulon.
Each of them welcomed the opening message expressed by Renaud Muselier and in particular, Christian Estrosi, who underlined the support given by the government to the region.
"We have the signature of a government majority which has validated our" regional project and "I feel totally associated with these outstretched hands, these open arms by Renaud Muselier," he said.
"It is the region first," said the mayor of Nice, addressing without naming those who "are already making calculations for the presidential election".
"For me, there is only one presidential campaign in the calendar, it is the regional presidential campaign," he said.
The question of regional alliances divides Republicans.
Some, like Renaud Muselier or Christian Estrosi, claim a form of autonomy in relation to the national dogma of the party, defended in particular by the deputy of the Alpes-Maritimes Eric Ciotti, who prohibits any alliance with LREM in order, in particular, not to pollute the message. of the party for the next presidential election.
The LR mayor of Cannes, David Lisnard, said this Wednesday on LCI that he would dissociate himself from Renaud Muselier if the latter made an alliance with LREM.
The boss of the LREM deputies Christophe Castaner had extended his hand to Renaud Muselier for a first round LR-LREM alliance for the regional Paca but the latter had refused any agreement of apparatus without however ruling out an agreement between Republicans for the second round against at the National Assembly.
Marine Le Pen's party, represented in the Paca region by MEP Thierry Mariani, would lead in the first round, according to polls, but would be beaten in the second by Renaud Muselier.
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