Surprise joining the union of the left last June, François Hollande perhaps dealt the fatal blow to the New Popular Front. In an interview given to the Tribune Sundaythe former president explains the socialist non-vote on censorship, and accuses Jean-Luc Mélenchon. “It’s an end to the disrespectful and arrogant position of LFI within the NFP,” he says, in an outing that sounds like a divorce.
“As soon as LFI announced that its leader would be a candidate in the presidential election no matter what, each component inevitably regained its freedom,” explains the man who nevertheless calls himself a “supporter of the union”. “Jean-Luc Mélenchon is like Madame Irma, his prophecies never come true,” continues François Hollande, regarding an early presidential election. “The Socialist Party is no longer a partner, it is an ally. And again, by circumstance,” Jean-Luc Mélenchon responded remotely on RTL/Public Sénate.
Flattery to Bayrou, anger within the PS
An ally turned towards the center now. By going to negotiate with François Bayrou, the socialists “first made the choice of political stability”, believes François Hollande. Active behind the scenes in these negotiations, the former president is full of praise for the Prime Minister. “If I understood correctly, it was he himself who appointed himself Prime Minister. He removed the last institutional garment that remained on the President of the Republic. »
“François Bayrou has precisely opened a new period,” also notes the socialist deputy. A period during which the PS can be “the central pole” and “have the keys until 2027” by influencing government policy, he believes. Calling for a PS congress, he encourages the party to integrate the lines of Raphaël Glucksmann and Bernard Cazeneuve.
-Words that provoke reactions even within the PS. “Non-censorship is not a given and the union of the left remains our compass for 2027,” thundered MP Laurent Baumel, a former “rebellious” from the Hollande era. “François Hollande does not represent the future of the PS,” added Iñaki Echaniz, one of the eight socialist deputies out of 66 to have voted for censure this week. “It is not François Hollande who dictates the strategy of the Socialist Party,” said party spokesperson and MEP Chloé Ridel.
