Nicolas Bay, former senior leader of the National Rally who announced Wednesday his rallying to Éric Zemmour, filed a complaint against the accusations of "sabotage" of the RN, criticizing, Thursday, February 17, his "slightly sectarian excesses".

"The way in which these people leave, both in form and in substance, says a lot more about them than about us", reacted the RN presidential candidate, Marine Le Pen, during a press conference on Thursday. midday.

>> To read: Presidential: in a meeting, Marine Le Pen and Éric Zemmour compete at a distance

"These accusations (from the RN are) totally false, lies which are defamatory, I have filed a complaint", said a little earlier on BFMTV and RMC Nicolas Bay, who filed a complaint for defamation on Wednesday afternoon, according to a copy of the complaint obtained by AFP.

"Just because we have disagreements doesn't mean we have to smear," he added.

The accusations made against me are false, so I filed a complaint yesterday for defamation.

We can have differences and political disagreements but I will not get dirty!

pic.twitter.com/xwD3gBy1Z6

— Nicolas Bay (@NicolasBay_) February 17, 2022

Nicolas Bay was suspended on Tuesday from "all his responsibilities", including a campaign spokesperson, within the RN, who accuses him of having transmitted "strategic and confidential elements" to Éric Zemmour, rival of Marine Le Pen , which the MEP denies.

Asked about LCI on Wednesday evening on this subject, Marine Le Pen assured that she had "the elements" but refused to make them public.

Marine Le Pen "pushes towards the exit successively (...) all those who embody a sensitivity", whether Marion Maréchal or Florian Philippot, lamented Nicolas Bay, evoking "a little sectarian drifts".

"It's more the operation of a sect than the operation of a mature political party."

"We cannot claim to bring the French together when we cannot bring together our own political family," he said.

"Refusal of any form of internal debate"

Nicolas Bay had announced Wednesday in Le Figaro his rallying to Éric Zemmour by castigating the "turnarounds and retreats" of Marine Le Pen and his "refusal of any form of internal debate" in the party.

Thursday, he said he had "sinned by excess of sincerity" because the "comedy would have consisted in (...) defending a candidacy in which (he) no longer believes, and overnight suddenly switch to a another candidate.

>> To read: Éric Zemmour welcomes "a long and warm telephone interview" with Donald Trump

He praised "the clarity, (...) the sincerity, the combativeness and an ability to bring together" of Éric Zemmour, who "rightly speaks of the 'great replacement'", conspiracy theory considering that the European population is replaced in an organized way by a non-European population.

Welcome dear @NicolasBay_ to @Reconquete2022, the great popular movement of convictions and patriotism!


Let's join forces to make @ZemmourEric win and save France.

Our country is better than parties;

our love of France is worth more than politicians.

https://t.co/PTqZlEW2d6

— Guillaume Peltier (@G_Peltier) February 17, 2022

During her press conference, Marine Le Pen claimed to have recorded, since she took the reins of the RN in 2011, "a lot of rallies", and underlined the fact that "the people who rallied to (she ) behaved extremely well with the political party they left, (...) because they are good people but also because it was a condition that was imposed".

"Marine Le Pen's RN has offered you two mandates as an MEP at 15,000 euros per month, three mandates as a regional councilor and a career. Stop the rant!", Launched the head of the RN in Burgundy on Twitter -Franche-Comté, Julien Odoul, to the address of Nicolas Bay.

The head of the RN federations, Gilles Pennelle, criticized a departure "without class and without panache" with a "thought of all the activists who did not count their hours to allow him to be elected".

Wishing "welcome" to Nicolas Bay, the ex-LR and vice-president of Reconquête!, Guillaume Peltier, for his part wrote on Twitter: "Our homeland is better than the parties; our love of France is worth more than The politicians."

With AFP

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