A primary among the socialists.

The first secretary of the party, Olivier Faure, confirmed, Friday, August 27, the holding of an internal primary to decide between the PS candidates in the presidential election of 2022. "There will be, as provided for by the statutes (of party), a militant vote, "he said on France Inter, recalling that this concerned" 50,000 militants ". 

One or two rounds will be organized according to "the number of candidates," said the first secretary of the PS, without detailing the schedule. 

I proposed a new method for activists to choose their candidate.

They are the ones who have awakened hope.

They are the ones who carry our struggles on a daily basis.

They will be the ultimate arbiters.


My interview with @lemondefr ⬇️https: //t.co/Ddf5QlDEsH

- Olivier Faure (@faureolivier) August 27, 2021

Support for Anne Hidalgo  

Olivier Faure has confirmed his support for the mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo - "the best of us to represent ourselves" -, who is due to make a speech on Friday in front of the socialist activists gathered in Blois. 

"If I did not say for whom I am speaking, I would actually be with a hidden agenda," defended the one who is a candidate for re-election as first secretary of the PS. 

On Wednesday, another tenor of the Socialist Party, Senator Patrick Kanner, said Anne Hidalgo was "close" to a declaration of candidacy.

"It is counted in number of days," he said. 

Olivier Faure has definitively swept away the idea of ​​a "primary citizen": "I do not want, like all socialists, relive moments of division which serve our candidacy more than they serve it".

"It is not useful to provoke one-upmanship, to create the conditions for a guaranteed defeat," he added, denouncing "the ego ball" that such an open primary would entail. 

A pulse 

"I want a controlled debate that allows (...) to understand (what) the capacities of each other", he added. 

But Olivier Faure wants at all costs to avoid "the division, the fragmentation" between the candidates which "decreases (rait) the chances of the left to be present in the second round", while the candidatures (Stéphane Le Foll, Arnaud Montebourg. ..) multiply on the left. 

He also said he wanted to "create momentum, give impetus" until the presidential election in April 2022, convinced that "this country needs to alternate". 

With AFP

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