"It's a bit complicated," grimaces Manuel Bompard.

The chief negotiator for La France Insoumise, placed in a position of strength after the solid 3rd place of Jean-Luc Mélenchon in the first round of the presidential election (21.95%), was however optimistic last Thursday.

Mr. Mélenchon himself was delighted Friday that the "discussions are progressing better" than he thought.

The ace!

The two main bilateral negotiations conducted by LFI with their former competitors and potential partners are experiencing turbulence, while the deadline mentioned by the protagonists, the weekend, is approaching.

First with EELV.

Discussions took place all weekend around the program.

And if the convergences are real on many subjects - "public services, wages, climate, equality between men and women, higher education ...", says the head of EELV Julien Bayou -, the subject of Europe is thorny.

The Insoumis thought to convince the ecologists, in love with a federalist European Union, by capitalizing on their common disapproval of the current treaties, via the concept of "disobedience".

But the green leaders respond to see it as the translation of the Mélenchonist "opt-out", a refusal to apply certain European rules which, according to them, can lead to a dangerous showdown.

The distribution of constituencies is another major obstacle.

Manuel Bompard claims to have taken into account the remarks of ecologists, offering them "20% of the 165 constituencies" called "of quality", in particular in the cities they hold (Grenoble, Strasbourg, Lyon, Tours, Poitiers, Bordeaux... ).

Julien Bayou, national secretary of EELV, on April 7, 2022 in Nantes Loic VENANCE AFP / Archives

He believes that the "Greens are crossed by internal contradictions between those who want us to govern together and those who have no interest in it".

As proof, he argues, the fact that the constituency proposed in Paris for Sandrine Rousseau, a supporter of an alliance with LFI, was not considered a priority by EELV.

Julien Bayou objects that LFI "does not take the same winnability criteria".

"respectful partnership"

He confides that the environmental pole has a major demand: the construction of a "coalition", and not inclusion in a "Popular Union".

"We do not want to do the presidential bis, the Popular Union ripolined would score the Insoumis", he said, advocating "a coalition to add us".

Symptomatic of these quibbles, the logo to be presented to voters on June 12 and 19.

Manuel Bompard agrees that the Popular Union has for "subtitle", or "in the graphic charter", the word "ecology".

While EELV claims a presence in the very name of the coalition.

"But afterwards, it's the Communists who will ask us!", plague Manuel Bompard.

Sandrine Rouseau (EELV) during a meeting of the environmental candidate for the presidential Yannick Jadot, March 27, 2022 at the Zénith in Paris STEPHANE DE SAKUTIN AFP / Archives

Even if he wants an agreement, the former boss of EELV, MEP David Cormand, still influential within the apparatus, hits hard against the Insoumis: "They think that we are begging when we wants a respectful partnership. They want to make us invisible, ask to join the People's Union and thus tacitly admit that there is no more use for an ecologist party".

The relationship with the Communists is also cooled.

Fabien Roussel would like the Socialists to be included in the agreement, even if it means procrastinating to make it understood by LFI.

So there were no meetings last weekend, and negotiations only resumed on Monday evening.

"We lost four days," sighs Manuel Bompard.

Fabien Roussel, communist presidential candidate, April 14, 2022 in Paris EMMANUEL DUNAND AFP / Archives

On the PS side, however, a path is opening up.

LFI proposed a meeting on Wednesday, which the Socialists accepted, the two parties told AFP.

Retiring at 60 does not convince the PS executives financially, who want to remain open on this question, which is crucial for LFI.

"The risk of agreement without the PS is no longer in season," hopes a socialist executive.

Who warns: "If Mélenchon wants this coalition to last, he has no interest in twisting our arm. But he can perfectly humiliate us and make us disappear from the Assembly".

In Le Parisien, the former Prime Minister Lionel Jospin considers "positive for (the PS) to participate in an electoral agreement of the whole left. Provided that we do not try to crush it".

© 2022 AFP