Entrepreneur Denis Payre announced on Twitter on Sunday that he was a candidate for a possible Republican primary for the 2022 presidential election, confirming information from Figaro.

"I made the decision to participate in the primary of the Republicans to animate it", affirms the entrepreneur on his twitter account.



Surprise candidate, having taken his card from LR on Friday according to

Le Figaro

, he says he is "ready to go to the end" if he succeeds in bringing together the 250 sponsorships required by LR management to be able to stand.

His candidacy brings the number of contenders for a possible primary to five, with Valérie Pécresse, Michel Barnier, Eric Ciotti and Philippe Juvin.

"Liberal, social reformer but conservative on values"

Founder in 2013 of the “We, Citizens” movement, he told

Le Figaro

that it is “urgent to recreate trust between politicians and civil society because we are in a terrible situation for our democracy”.

“There is a risk of democratic rupture,” adds the 58-year-old entrepreneur.



Defining himself as “liberal, social reformer but conservative on values”, he says he is “in favor of economic freedom but very attached to the republican pact, with a school that gives everyone a chance and a social lift that works”.

"No social assistance should be granted without compensation and without rendering service to the community", adds the father of four children.

Qualitative study


LR management would prefer to avoid having to organize a primary, which they believe is synonymous with divisions.

It must launch Monday a vast qualitative study, on a sample of 15,000 activists or sympathizers of the right and the center, in order to measure the popularity of each of the contenders for the Elysee Palace as well as the most important themes in the eyes of voters.


The president of Hauts-de-France Xavier Bertrand, who formalized his candidacy in March, intends to run for president without going through the primary.


The Republicans will hold a congress on September 25 to decide whether or not to launch a primary, with the aim of nominating their candidate at the end of November.

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