After having postponed it to December, the Republicans will soon organize the designation of their head of list for the metropolitan elections. A ballot in which the mayors of Saint-Priest and Écully should compete.
After having postponed the designation of its head of list for the next metropolitan elections, scheduled for last December, the right will officially name the successor of François-Noël Buffet on February 2. An election which should see Gilles Gascon, mayor of Saint-Priest, and Sébastien Michel, mayor of Écully, face each other, barring a last-minute candidacy.
The first advanced a first pawn on January 8 by taking the head of the LR and related group in Grand Lyon, succeeding Philippe Cochet, forced to withdraw after his sentence to five years of ineligibility. Thus, everyone scrutinized the result of the vote, which saw him win against the mayor of Meyzieu, Christophe Quiniou. “We can have two interpretations of this internal election. The first is that Gilles legitimizes his candidacy by taking the head of this group. The second is that by winning with 17 votes to 14 against Christophe, who often has iconoclastic positions in this group, it is not really a plebiscite”confides an observer from the local right.
The right seeks to remain united despite the election
Gilles Gascon preferred to highlight his desire to pose “a first stone” at the Constitution Building “a project for the metropolitan right”. “The main thing is that this vote took place in a relaxed and serene atmosphere to move forward calmly with a united group”greeted the mayor of Saint-Priest.
If the atmosphere is not one of division – unlike the recent history of the Lyon right – the implementation of this local vote did not happen without waves. “The knives are not drawn. But we had to accept numerous requests on the composition of the electoral college, notably from Gilles Gascon.indicates support from Sébastien Michel. This electoral college will be made up of around fifty elected officials including LR and related mayors, elected officials serving in the region and the metropolis but also parliamentarians. “We had a moral duty towards our voters and supporters to work to get to work as quickly as possible behind whoever will be designated”sweeps Jérémie Bréaud, mayor of Bron and president of the LR federation of the Rhône. The latter will have to arbitrate the elegances. A delicate position for the former collaborator of Gilles Gascon and childhood friend of Sébastien Michel. “Both have interesting profiles, coming from different worlds and different territories. Now when we have ambitions we must not be afraid of the vote”continues the elected LR.
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Duel of generations
The duel that is coming, in addition to being a geographical duel (Écully, a chic western suburb, facing Saint-Priest, a more popular town in eastern Lyon) is also that of generations. Gilles Gascon, although elected in 2014, is today associated with the old wave of LR mayors of Greater Lyon. From this right locally described as “the stupidest in France” which, from internal divisions to Parisian parachute drops, set in motion the losing machine in a city whose sociology has long suited it. Sébastien Michel, elected in 2020, just like Jérémie Bréaud or Pierre Oliver in Lyon, is part of this new Lyon right that arrived when the environmentalist majority took power in the metropolis.
Three elected officials who have known each other since their militant youth within the Republicans. “There is a photo of them together at Groupama Stadium dating from 2015, they are friends above all”recalls a local executive. And to add: “It’s a generation that thinks anything can happen right away. But you also have to plan for the long term. Collomb was first elected in 1977. He became mayor of Lyon in 2001. In Sébastien Michel’s entourage, we prefer to talk “of a new team that wants to win and is not content to distribute compensation”. “We are just waiting for that to work”they get impatient.
The shadow of Wauquiez?
These young elected officials also united behind Laurent Wauquiez, regional tutelary figure, of whom Sébastien Michel was the collaborator. Friendships and proximity with the boss of LR who is a little tense on the side of Gilles Gascon's supporters, who fear participating in a vote predetermined and dictated by Laurent Wauquiez. “Frankly, it’s a fantasy. On the one hand, I believe that given the national context, Laurent does not only have that to do. On the other hand, I don't have the impression that the electoral college is really more favorable to one than to the other.tempers a mayor of the metropolis. However, it is difficult to believe that he will stay completely away from this election. However, this vote remains the best way for Gilles Gascon to win. Without a local vote, the national investiture commission would have decided the matter from Paris. Commission of which Sébastien Michel is a member.
On both sides, everyone is now waiting for the result of the vote to move on. “The objective is to appoint someone to work together on a project to revive the hope of residents. This person will have the mission of building this project but also of continuing negotiations with our partners”explains Jérémie Bréaud. And Pierre Oliver concludes: “The subject now is not to repeat the error of 2020 with two parallel campaigns and totally lost voters. This election will really launch the municipal and metropolitan elections of 2026”. The deadline for submitting applications has been set for January 27 at 12 p.m.
