Yvelines senator Sophie Primas is the new government spokesperson.
She was already a member of Michel Barnier's government as Minister Delegate in charge of Foreign Trade and French people abroad to the Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs.
This former LR elected official had announced that she was leaving the party in June to register her opposition to the agreement between Éric Ciotti and the RN for the 2024 legislative elections.
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The government of François Bayrou
A right-wing woman as a spokesperson. To symbolize his desire for openness, François Bayrou appointed to this strategic position Sophie Primas, an elected representative of the Republican right, senator since 2011. Already in the government during Michel Barnier's short stint at Matignon, she was then minister delegate in charge of Foreign trade and French people abroad. Close to Gérard Larcher, systematically placed in second position on the list of the President of the Senate in his department, this agricultural engineer by training and commercial director by profession is experienced in debates on agriculture, consumption or energy.
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The first woman to occupy the prestigious position of president of the Senate Economic Affairs Committee between 2017 and 2023, Sophie Primas was appointed vice-president of the High Assembly during her last re-election, in 2023.
She slammed the door of the Republicans
Former mayor of the commune of Aubergenville, the senator was at the heart of the examination of certain key laws of Emmanuel Macron's mandate, such as the Elan law, Energy Climate or the “Egalim” laws, intended to rebalance relations trade between agri-food suppliers and mass retailers, and to guarantee a decent income for farmers. She also stood out for her opposition to the ratification of the Ceta free trade treaty between the European Union and Canada, against the advice of the government of the time, that of Gabriel Attal.
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Often critical of her own political family, she was one of the first to announce that she was slamming the Republican door on the day Eric Ciotti announced his support for the National Rally in the legislative elections. “The party is too damaged. I think that the right has an interest in rebuilding another political party which is a right-wing party, without having to get closer to the RN or the presidential majority”she explained to AFP again at the end of June, while confirming her intact allegiance to the LR group in the Senate. “I would rather lose an election than lose my soul”she also said at the time.
