Historically the land of the PS, the 6e The Gironde constituency, which has been in the hands of Macronie since 2017, made a shift during the European elections by endorsing the RN list for the first time. A score that suggests the likelihood of a three-way race in the second round of the legislative elections.
Le Figaro Bordeaux
The 6e Will the Gironde constituency, which covers Mérignac, Pessac and Bègles, swing to the nationalist right during the early legislative elections? A historic land of the left, held almost continuously by MP Michel Sainte-Marie (PS) since 1988 and then by socialist Marie Récalde from 2012, the constituency was swept up in the Macronie wave in 2017. Invested with this mandate since then, the outgoing MP Éric Poulliat (Renaissance) faces a new challenge at the time of the dissolution.
For the first time, it was Jordan Bardella’s (RN) list that came out on top in the European elections with 24.22% of the vote. Réveiller l’Europe, the PS list, came in second with 19.82% of the votes cast, leaving third place to Besoin d’Europe, the presidential majority list, with 17.59% of the vote. Figures which, when compared with the scores from the first round of the 2022 legislative elections (34.83% for Renaissance, 33.93% for Nupes and 14.87% for RN)suggest the possibility of a triangular for the second round on July 7.
“A triangular has never been so possible”admits Éric Poulliat, who will also defend his mandate against Nicole Destouesse (Reconquête!), Franck Bonhomme (Miscellaneous centre), Jonathan Florit (ecologist) and Guillaume Perchet (Far left). But the outgoing MP hopes that the high turnout expected on Sunday – estimated at 66% in the latest projections by Le Figaro – will reshuffle the cards. “An election is never won or lost in advance. I don’t want to believe that in this moderate and serious constituency, the RN could be a solution. There was a strong mobilization of their voters in the European elections when ours voted less, but this will rebalance on Sunday.”, assures Éric Poulliat. The municipal representative in Saint Aubin de Médoc, supported by Christophe Duprat, mayor of his commune and secretary general of the LR Federation of Gironde, is also counting on a transfer of votes from non-ciottist LRs. For “do not divide forces”no candidate from this branch of the Republicans is running against him.
“The major issue will be the LR vote”
Candidate of the right-wing coalition allied to Eric Ciotti’s LR, Jimmy Bourlieux (RN) also knows that the stakes of the election lie in this postponement of LR votes for which the list led by François Xavier Bellamy achieved 7.47% to the Europeans. “We could potentially end up with 35% of the vote and a good chance of winning a three-way race if no one withdraws.”estimates the secretary general of the RN group at the regional council, based on the results of the European elections.
The RN regional councillor also has his hopes for the wave of Macronism being ousted as predicted by the polls. “Mr. Poulliat’s main problem is that he is Emmanuel Macron’s candidate. Its local electorate has evaporated”, predicts the thirty-year-old. A thorn in the side that the majority candidate accepts without resigning himself. “It’s the political game”thus retorts the elected representative Renaissance.
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No withdrawal in sight in the second round
And the outgoing MP is all the more convinced of this because he believes he is the only moderate alternative to the two camps that are gripping him. “Marie Récalde’s return to the constituency does not worry me. Although she is a socialist, she is running in a cynical electoral team that is carrying the electoral trough of the New Popular Front. She is accumulating local mandates and her parliamentary record, 12 years ago, is zero.”, tackles the almost fifty-year-old. He also denounces the about-face of his rival. While she had refused to run under the Nupes label in 2020, Marie Récalde now appears under the NFP logo. “We are in an unprecedented period which worries me a lot and that is the meaning of my commitment”is justified by the triple local elected official in the Region, the Metropolis and the town hall of Mérignac. “In 2022, I could not leave with Nupes because I am a social democrat. The NFP is different, I didn’t hesitate for a second. We must confront the RN through unity and we would have been criticized for not doing so.”
The candidate of the New Popular Front does not, however, commit to withdrawing in the second round of voting in the event of a three-way race. “We’ll see the scores. I will take my Republican responsibilities when the time comes. That said, I sense panic among my opponents”, she evades. Same story with Éric Pouillat who “does not find it responsible to leave the French people the choice between the extreme right and the extreme left”. A concern far from the dynamic on which Jimmy Bourlieux is surfing. “I think that this constituency will reconstitute an inverted Republican front against the extreme left which defends degrowth via the Greens and announces more taxes through LFI. Qualifying for the second round would be a historic performance in this territory,” the RN candidate advances. But at the moment, “all scenarios are possible” However, the three favorites of the 6th constituency of Gironde agree.
