“There will be, whatever the result, a before and an after,” insisted Gabriel Attal on Sunday on the set of the RTL/M6/Le Figaro Grand Jury, noting that “this is the first time in more than 25 years that the French vote for legislative elections during their mandate.
“It is a choice of government and society,” he insisted, in a political landscape strongly polarized around three offers: that of the National Rally and its right-wing allies, credited with 35% to 36% of the voting intentions according to weekend polls; that of the New Popular Front (27% to 29.5%); and the Macronist camp, left behind (19.5 to 22%).
“Dynamic”. Despite this unfavorable balance of power, Mr. Attal “obviously” believes in the possibility of obtaining an absolute majority in the Assembly on July 7, arguing that his bloc is “the most dynamic in this campaign”, after n having received only 14.6% of the votes in the European elections.
Leader of his camp, while President Macron shows a sharp drop in popularity according to two barometers published on Sunday, Mr. Attal therefore expects from this election “additional legitimization which will be given by the ballot boxes” and which would strengthen him in his position . An advantage that he intends to exploit through a change “in the practice of power, in the governance of the country”, he assured.
“The message that was sent to us” with the Europeans “is also obviously that in the method, in governance, we must do better (…) by seeking coalitions with the French, with civil society” , he detailed. An inflection endorsed by Emmanuel Macron who “perfectly understood that in our way of doing things, in the method, in substance, a change was necessary”, insisted the Prime Minister.
Macron “has changed”. Moreover, faced with the “ordeals”, Mr. Macron himself “changed”, the Minister of Culture Rachida Dati told LCI. The Head of State “knows where he wants to go, where he wants to take the French,” she continued, also promising, in the event of victory, “a new project, a new governance, a new vision, a new form of authority and firmness on all subjects.”
Rachida Dati, Minister of Culture, in Paris on March 11, 2024. – Anne-Christine POUJOULAT – Paris (AFP)
In the same register, the President of the Assembly Yaël Braun-Pivet gave a mea culpa on BFMTV, agreeing that the Macronists had been “too vertical”: “I think that we did not involve the French to the policies we have pursued. And I have always pleaded for referendums to be held.”
“Carnage.” Caught in a political pinch, between the left alliance and the RN, the presidential camp is therefore looking for a way through. With a unifying tone, with the boss of Horizons Edouard Philippe on France 3, pleading for “a broader political base” and reaching out to “those who want to come, from the conservative right to the social-democratic left”.
Or more offensive in the face of adversaries, like Mr. Attal warning against “economic and social carnage” which would result “in a fiscal bludgeoning on one side or the other (…) or a crusher of middle classes “.
“I deeply believe that the National Rally is not ready to govern,” he continued, mocking the “suspensive conditions” posed by Jordan Bardella who demands an absolute majority to enter Matignon.
“Let him be quiet.” But “this political alternation must apply to an absolute majority,” defended the RN mayor of Perpignan Louis Aliot on France inter. Because otherwise, “there will be measures that will not be applicable immediately. And I don’t think that’s the will of the people.”
And “a hundred times, yes, we are ready and we have expanded our gathering capacity”, underlined the RN deputy Sébastien Chenu on Radio J, while his party must unveil on Monday morning its “priorities of the government of national unity” which he intends to establish.
The left alliance has once again become mired in speculation around its candidate for Matignon. Saturday evening, Jean-Luc Mélenchon restarted the juke box by saying his “intention to govern this country”. “If I have a message to convey, it is that Jean-Luc Mélenchon (…), if he wants to be of service to the New Popular Front, he must put himself aside, he must shut up,” ex-president François Hollande, himself a candidate in Corrèze, squeaked in return on Sunday in front of journalists.
Jérémy MAROT with Sami ACEF
© Agence France-Presse
