We have known more relaxed. In Rennes, this Sunday, June 30, early in the evening, there is excitement among the fifty or so Bretillian activists of the presidential majority who have come to discover the results of the first round of the legislative elections. At that time, no one yet knows that in Ille-et-Vilaine, the Macronists will come in second place (28.6%) behind the New Popular Front (34.5%) and ahead of the National Rally (24.9%). Faces are therefore closed and for many, glued to a phone screen.
Gathered at the Comptoir Vénitien, a restaurant near the ring road, the activists watched, worried, as the results were announced at the national level, which put the RN in the lead ahead of the union of the left and the presidential majority. “It’s a real sadness to see the RN so high. It must be our common fight to ensure that there are no more RN deputies. It’s our collective responsibility,” said MEP Marie-Pierre Védrenne. Re-elected to the European Parliament on June 9, the elected official also says she is “sad” in the face of the many triangulars that are looming in Ille-et-Vilaine. For her, “there were disappointments in relation to our commitments and our promises of 2017. Of course we did not do everything well. But we have also implemented many things but they have not always been well understood. We therefore need to recreate the link”
At her side, Hermine Mauzé is surrounded by the activists who accompanied her during what was her first campaign, in the 8th constituency. A business leader and president of the Femmes de Bretagne network, she also talks about her “sadness”. “I have a unifying project, one of enthusiasm. And what I see is a lot of votes against. I want to see votes for,” says the woman who will learn, a few hours later, of the re-election of the outgoing MP, the socialist Mickaël Bouloux, in the first round.
300 qualified candidates in France: “Oh really!”
In the middle of the evening, suddenly, everyone falls silent. Laurence Maillart-Méhaignerie, the outgoing MP for the 2nd constituency, speaks on a television set opposite Tristan Lahais, her opponent from the left-wing union. “In this constituency, where the leader of the Macronists of Ille-et-Vilaine came in 2nd behind Tristan Lahais, “it’s going to be ultra-tight,” admits an activist.
Once Laurence Maillart-Méhaignerie’s intervention is over, the discussions resume. Everyone is waiting for him. It is then that Gabriel Attal speaks. The appearance of the Prime Minister brings genuine smiles to many faces. From Matignon, he announces that more than 300 majority candidates will be in the second round. ” Ah anyway ! », smiles Chantal.
“Perception of insecurity” and “economic injustice”
Nicolas Boucher, for his part, has his eyes glued to the results that he consults on his phone. Candidate in the 1st constituency, the head of Modem 35, notes that he is second behind the left and ahead of the RN. “I have chosen fraternity since April 2002, it is the basis of my commitment. So seeing the RN in the legislative elections in my constituency, it bothers me to the highest degree. But I cannot blame the voters. When I speak with them, there are two subjects that concern them: the perception of insecurity and economic injustice. We must respond to them”, considers the candidate, who should remain in the second round.
Around 10:30 p.m., Laurence Maillart-Méhaignerie arrived among the activists to applause. The one who knows she is in a delicate situation does not give up: “there is still a week of work to convince those who voted for the extremes”. For her, the only objective “is that people are not fooled”. “The voters deserve clarity, I am not for facade candidacies, where behind there is an alliance with LFI and Jean-Luc Mélenchon,” she scathes, in reference to her left-wing opponent. People know me, they know my track record, what I commit to and don’t commit to. »
