The campaign for the early legislative elections ends this Friday, June 28, 2024, at 11:59 p.m., before the first round of voting on Sunday, June 30. Some candidates have increased the number of public meetings, while others have increased their presence on social networks. A look back at these few weeks of campaigning that have shaken up the political sphere of Icaunais.
Twenty-one days. The campaign started after the announcement of the dissolution on June 9, 2024 will have been the shortest in the history of the Fifth Republic. Candidates for the early legislative elections have until Friday June 28, 11:59 p.m., to convince before the first round. The end of a first sprint.
Without having been able to anticipate real campaign strategies, the Icaunais contenders quickly had to organize themselves to occupy the ground. On the markets, as on the networks. Given the tight schedule, some like Florence Loury have given up on public meetings. The candidate of the left (NFP, first constituency) rather focused on leafleting operations, exchanges in the street, before a single meeting. Unlike his opponent Victor Albrecht (Renaissance, first constituency) who devoted almost all his evenings to public meetings.
On the networks
But this lightning campaign also played out on social media. Accustomed to the genre, the incumbent Julien Odoul (RN, third constituency) was omnipresent on the ground, on the Internet and on prime-time TV sets. Nicolas Soret (NFP, third constituency) also invested in the networks, very regularly publishing videos on the left’s program. The method was also used by the incumbent André Villiers (Horizons, second constituency), associating his substitute. Just like his opponent Philippe Veyssière (NFP, second constituency), very active online. Conversely, the two other RN candidates Daniel Grenon (first constituency) and Sophie-Laurence Roy (LR/RN, second constituency) led a discreet campaign, relying mainly on the dynamics of their political side.
Distinguished guests
The battle of support
Throughout the campaign, the various candidates for the Assembly sought local support in order to lend credibility to their initiative. A strategy anchored in practice, even if voters are less and less inclined to follow voting instructions. Céline Bähr (LR) began as soon as she declared her candidacy, indicating that she was supported by the outgoing André Villiers (Horizons). She has since published a list of around fifty names of elected officials from Icaunais forming her “support committee”. Among them are Mahfoud Aomar, president of the AMF 89, Patrick Gendraud, president of the Department, Crescent Marault, mayor of Auxerre and former minister Henri de Raincourt.
Also a candidate in the Auxerre-Puisaye constituency, Victor Albrecht asserted the support of several personalities such as that of the mayor of Dijon François Rebsamen, Alain Chrétien, mayor of Vesoul and the former Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin . André Villiers, for his part, claims to be supported in particular by Guy Roux. Less known than his competitors in the north of Yonne, Grégoire Weigel (DVD) also wants to make a difference by ensuring that “elected officials from the LR field” support him in Joigny and Sens.
But certain unexpected positions also fueled this campaign for the first round. Like that of the former mayor of Auxerre Guy Férez towards the ecologist Florence Loury, or that of senator Dominique Verien (UDI) who called in the first round to vote for Nicolas Soret (PS), despite the candidacy of Michèle Crouzet (MoDem) in the north of Yonne.
What about the second round?
Some candidates have already given their line in the event of defeat in the first round. In the first constituency, Victor Albrecht (Renaissance) assured that he will call to vote for Florence Loury (NFP) or Céline Bähr (LR) in the event of a duel with the RN. In return, Florence Loury also affirmed that she would support Victor Albrecht against Daniel Grenon (RN). Céline Bähr did not wish to take a position.
In the third constituency, in the event of defeat, Nicolas Soret (NFP) said on the set of France 3 Burgundy that he would support Michèle Crouzet (MoDem) against the RN. The latter assured in return that she would call for a vote for the socialist candidate.
Sophie Bardin
