The aura of Jean-Luc Mélenchon, already overwhelming in a movement he created and made grow, progressed further by obtaining 21.95% of the votes on Sunday, coming very close to qualifying in the second round.

And while standing for re-election in June did not hold up a few months ago - the Insoumis leader having already exercised his "dream" of leading a group in the National Assembly - the hypothesis has taken on consistency these last weeks with the domination of LFI in the polls, then in the polls.

Already, Mr. Mélenchon is receiving requests from many executives and activists to present himself – this time not in the Bouches-du-Rhône – one of his close friends told AFP.

Who explains that the scenario of a president elected shortly on April 24, whether Emmanuel Macron or Marine Le Pen, would reinforce the probability of seeing the tribune re-enlist at the Palais Bourbon.

If we add that the Insoumis give themselves the objective of imposing a "cohabitation" by winning the legislative elections, the idea of ​​​​a rapid transfer of power between Mr. Mélenchon and another figure moves away.

"It's a premature discussion," said his campaign manager Manuel Bompard.

However, the MEP believes that the movement's next presidential candidate will have to be found "within two years": "Have you seen what it's like when it happens hard?", he smiles looking towards the PS and Anne Hidalgo.

"No administrative heir"

If no one dares to declare themselves frontally, there is no shortage of potential leaders.

The deputies Adrien Quatennens, François Ruffin, Mathilde Panot, Clémentine Autain, Alexis Corbière, Eric Coquerel, the new recruit Aurélie Trouvou, Manuel Bompard...

The leader of La France insoumise Jean-Luc Mélenchon surrounded by his campaign manager Manuel Bompard (g) and LFI deputy Mathilde Panot (d), on the evening of the first round of the presidential election, April 10, 2022 in Paris Emmanuel DUNAND AFP/Archives

The first two set a milestone this week.

Adrien Quatennens, omnipresent on TV sets, spoke on Monday of the succession of Jean-Luc Mélenchon: "We will get there sooner or later. And the sooner the better".

As for François Ruffin, who had already explained during the quinquennium which is ending his temptation to play the leading role, he argued his difference Thursday in an interview with Liberation.

Welcoming the "joyful" campaign of Jean-Luc Mélenchon, the free-electron nonetheless indirectly criticized a strategy neglecting "peripheral France", rural and peri-urban, in which Marine Le Pen was a hit.

"It does not appear as a priority (of LFI). And when we look at the statistics from the polls, that's what we dive into".

François Ruffin says he does not want to remain a "magnificent loser" and is aiming for victory for the left in 2027.

"I was already thinking about it in 2017, I was saying it: if we want to win, we have to go get this France," says the deputy from the Somme, who calls for "long-term work" in the coming years.

Manuel Bompard agrees with the observation, but remains cautious about a change in strategy.

"We did campaign in these areas. If I didn't think so, it wouldn't be nice for François" Ruffin, who has held several public meetings there on behalf of Mr. Mélenchon in recent months.

"But the question is to add, not to replace" an electorate, for example those "bobo" or working-class neighborhoods, by another, he underlines.

He warns against "a sudden change of direction" and invites instead a "synthesis".

The MEP warns that the legislative elections, then the parliamentary work, will be decisive for the contenders: "Who is elected, who is not. Each of the parliamentarians will have to make his mark and we will see who is best placed".

LFI deputy François Ruffin during a debate in the National Assembly on January 16, 2022 in Paris Thomas COEX AFP / Archives

Jean-Luc Mélenchon will not endorse anyone, he thinks he knows: "It does not exist, that we choose an heir administratively. Leadership is acquired through political struggle".

The "struggle" will also be internal, concedes the strategist: "I am not naive, I know politics. Nevertheless, the collective interest will have to be privileged, that we sit around a table".

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© 2022 AFP