In a small confined room at the Maison des associations in Châteauroux, this Saturday, September 28, 2024, a small earthquake began in the cozy world of local politics. Around a table, sixteen faces, eight women and eight men, responded to the call from Guillaume Chaussemy, mayor of Pont-Chrétien-Chabenet, for the first official meeting of the “Gagner!” collective. in Indre”. The initiative is not trivial: this collective is formed in support of the ideas of the former Insoumis François Ruffin, with a clear objective: “weigh in the debate on the left”.
“I don’t want a guru like at LFI”
“This is a firstlaunches the ex-rebel at the opening. Around the table, for the most part, we don’t know each other. » But, behind this diversity, it is a desire to reinvent political action that is essential. For two years, he explains, “we want to implement Ruffin’s ideas almost everywhere in France, and that starts here, at home, in Indre.”
Disappointed from the left
Around the table, there is a heterogeneous picture of disappointed activists and sympathizers, tired of traditional left-wing parties. Many left the Socialist Party (PS) after years of disillusionment, like Philippe Morin, who joined Génération.s after the PS, only to come up against a lack of internal democracy. Dominique Fleurat, once a fervent socialist, admits to having switched to La France insoumise (LFI), but now feels foreign to the division which is plaguing the left. Most, like Geneviève, a former member of the Greens, or Martine, a former socialist activist, have broken with the major parties, tired of internal quarrels and the lack of a unitary perspective. Others, like Véronique and Antoine, come without political ties, seeking to understand, perhaps for the first time, an alternative that really speaks to citizens.
Behind the words, the criticism of a fragmented left, incapable of uniting, is omnipresent. “We can no longer afford to remain divided in the face of the rise of the far right”underlines Dominique Fleurat. The testimonies keep coming. Philippe Morin, from Issoudun is clear: “I don’t want a guru like at LFI. I am for participatory democracy. What I want is a collective with a minimum of verticality. »
“We will have to show what we are capable of”
The formula appeals. Martine René, reader of Fakir from the start, evokes his disgust with the logic of voting by default. “I’m fed up with electoral blackmail. Ruffin embodies another path, even if he is still too soft for politics”she believes.
Geneviève, a former member of the Greens, is more cautious: “Before going to tell people to support this collective, we will have to show what we are capable of. » For her, everything remains to be proven.
A collective still in its infancy
The meeting ends with a feeling of uncertainty. No concrete decisions have been made, but the energy is palpable. “We will continue, that’s for sure”affirms Guillaume Chaussemy. A next meeting is already scheduled in a month. Until then, everyone will leave with the same question in mind: how can this collective bring something new to the unity of the left? To “Win!” », it will still take a lot of work and above all, unity.
