Decapitated by the shattering alliance between their president Eric Ciotti and the RN, given for “dead” in their own ranks, the Republicans nevertheless put up resistance on Sunday in the first round of the legislative elections thanks to their local roots. They refuse to call for a vote against the far-right party in the second.
With 9 to 10% of the vote, according to initial estimates, the right would obtain a score practically unchanged compared to 2022 and would manage to retain 30 to 50 seats in the second round out of the 61 it had, despite the dissent of Eric Ciotti.
“In terms of number of votes, we would do even better than two years ago,” estimates an LR executive, the party having probably collected more than the 2.3 million votes in the first round of 2022 thanks to stronger participation.
“It remains honourable, but what counts in the end is the number of seats,” says another party official who expects “uncertain duels” with the RN next Sunday with probable losses among the outgoing LR.
The director of Cevipof, Martial Foucault, underlined the “very strong resistance of LR which will lose very few deputies”, estimating that their “loyalty to the party has undoubtedly preserved its candidates”.
Among the party’s personalities, Laurent Wauquiez, who has Elysian ambitions, comes first in his stronghold of Haute-Loire with 36.78% of the vote, ahead of RN candidate Alexandre Heuzey (35.77% of the vote).
Same scenario in Haut-Doubs, where the party’s national secretary Annie Genevard is a short head ahead of her RN rival, while Aurélien Pradié, who announced his departure from LR on Thursday, considering that this party was “dead” , comes clearly in the lead in the Lot with 42.25% of the votes ahead of the left-wing candidate at 24.33%.
In the Paris region, the outgoing Philippe Juvin was elected in the first round in Hauts-de-Seine, with the support of the presidential camp.
Results obtained by LR, as in 2022, thanks to the local roots of the incumbents, each of whom campaigned in their constituency. And, this time, without the support at the national level of the party, deprived of both a leader and televised debates after the “betrayal” of Eric Ciotti.
– “Repair the LR brand” –
“We already did not have a national figure in 2022 and we had obtained 61 seats”, underlines a party leader, who however considers it necessary to “repair the LR brand” to occupy a “political space which still exists”.
Long caught between the RN and Emmanuel Macron’s camp, Les Républicains will have to face another threat in the second round, that of Eric Ciotti, the president they have still not managed to exclude. The latter called on them on Sunday evening to “follow the path” he opened by allying with the RN.
“The unprecedented and historic union that we built with Jordan Bardella put an end to too many years of inaction which relegated the right to the role of helpless spectator,” exclaimed the man who presented 62 candidates in the legislative elections.
The deputy for Alpes-Maritimes came first in his constituency with 41% of the votes and his party Les Républicains on the right obtained in the same department the election in the first round of Christelle D’Intorni, the only outgoing deputy in the having followed in its alliance with the RN.
In a statement released by its national leadership, which refused to follow its president, LR refused to call for a vote against the RN in the second round, as in 2022.
“Where we are not present in the second round, considering that voters are free to choose, we do not give national instructions and let the French express themselves in conscience,” they wrote.
MEP François-Xavier Bellamy, for his part, estimated that “the danger facing our country today is the extreme left”.
Several outgoing members, such as group president Olivier Marleix or outgoing Julien Dive, however find themselves in an unfavorable toss behind the RN and will need the support of their left-wing rivals and the Macronist camp to block the RN.
