Aurélien Rousseau will be a candidate in the seventh constituency of Yvelines. Former Minister of Health, he is not running for the presidential camp but under the banner of the New Popular Front. What are his chances?
Aurélien Rousseau, former Minister of Health, is a candidate in the seventh constituency of Yvelines, around Conflans-Saint-Honorine, for the early legislative elections. This candidacy came as a surprise since the former member of the government, who had also been chief of staff to Elisabeth Borne, did not run with the presidential camp but under the banner of the New Popular Front. Emmanuel Macron did not fail to make fun of this choice: “it shows all its coherence”, quipped the President of the Republic on the sidelines of the G7.
Guest on FranceInfo Thursday June 20, Aurélien Rousseau spoke of a “political disagreement” as well as “a deep divergence” with Emmanuel Macron to explain his change of heart. He also recalled that he left the government following the immigration law last December: “I considered that we were going too far on the lands of the RN, I perceived an orientation to the right”. He defended on commits myself to the dynamic of bringing together the left Popular Front, the only one capable of blocking the extreme right.
Aurélien Rousseau had previously been a member of the PCF and then became deputy chief of staff to the socialist Bertrand Delanoë, Manuel Valls and Bernard Cazeneuve. From 2018 to 2021, he was director of the Île-de-France Regional Health Agency and piloted health policy in the region, particularly during the Covid-19 pandemic.
What results for Aurélien Rousseau in the legislative elections?
On June 30, Aurélien Rousseau will notably face the outgoing deputy of the presidential majority and former Minister of the City from 2020 to 2022, Nadia Hai. Restaurateur Babette de Rozières will represent the RN, municipal councilor Julien Frejabue LR, psychologist Colette Aubrée Reconquête, Jack Lefebvre the Independent Democratic Workers Party and European candidate Ali Kaya Lutte Ouvrière.
Aurélien Rousseau arrives in a constituency where the presidential camp he left has already made a good place for itself. During the 2022 legislative elections in the constituency, Nadia Hai was re-elected as a deputy with 55.64% of the votes against Michèle Christophoul of NUPES who obtained 44.36% of the votes. She managed to obtain 29.55% of the votes in the first round against 27.19% for the NUPES candidate. Nadia Hai had also already been elected to this position in 2017.
What if the competition this time came from the RN? In the European elections, it was the RN which came first with 23.53% of the votes in the constituency. Renaissance made 16.70% followed closely by Raphaël Glucksmann’s list with 15.32%. LFI, for its part, made 13.58%.
Furthermore, at the national level, according to an Ifop-Fiducial survey for LCI, Le Figaro And South Radio As of June 23, the National Rally has currently received 35.5% of voting intentions in the first round, followed by the NFP with 29%. The presidential camp is falling behind with only 21% of voting intentions. These estimates remain national, and do not give the local political balance of power. However, they highlight a duel which could prove to be close between the dominant political forces.