The right-wing party Les Républicains (LR), seriously shaken since the European elections, has finally saved its skin after the dissolution of the French National Assembly. LR managed to elect around forty parliamentarians to the Assembly and can still rally other elected representatives from various right-wing groups to form a group of around sixty deputies. But what role will LR be able to play in this new Assembly without a majority for anyone?
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Between 2022 and today, the French right-wing party Les Républicains (LR) had refused any alliance with the former presidential majority, but the right had regularly saved the government by never joining all of its votes in the numerous motions of censure.
The Republicans – who won around sixty seats in the Assembly Sunday in the legislative electionsincluding around forty under the LR label and around fifteen under that of various right-wing groups – today seem to remain on the same line, if we stick to the possible future leader of the group, Laurent WauquiezThe latter hammered home from the evening of the second round: ” No coalition, no compromise. Independence, nothing but independence. »
But the former party leader, who is running for the French presidential election 2027, will he succeed in holding his troops? That is the whole issue, especially since the departure of the former president of the group, Éric Ciotti, who left for the RN.
A coalition with the presidential camp?
But after initially being inflexible on the hypothesis, the LR – those closest to the centre – are already tempted to joinlike others before them, Emmanuel Macron in a coalition. A president who has been silent since the second round of the legislative elections which saw the New Popular Front – the alliance of the left – overtake the presidential camp in the legislative elections, and who already received Tuesday evening at the Elysée the LR president of the Senate Gérard Larcher, according to information confirmed by the AFP and Le Figaro.
Some leading figures on the right are going even further: the LR president of Hauts-de-France, Xavier Bertrand, as well as the deputy Olivier Marleix, pleaded on Tuesday July 9 for the appointment of a Prime Minister from their camp.
“ We need an emergency government with LR, independents, Emmanuel Macron’s camp, and perhaps also men and women of good will who clearly want our country not to be paralyzed. “, explained Xavier Bertrand on France 2 Tuesday evening. Refusing to talk about coalitionhe presented his initiative as a ” government of unity “, considering that ” If we want there to be a change, it cannot be a Prime Minister from the presidential camp who has to go to Matignon “.
LR Prime Minister?
So, will we have a Prime Minister from the LR ranks? to replace Gabriel Attal ? In any case, this is a compromise that would not pose ” no problem ” to the president of the Horizons party, Édouard Philippe. The latter even pleaded on Tuesday for a “ technical agreement ” between the presidential camp and the Republicans, who will have to, in the event of refusal, ” explain to their voters that they preferred a New Popular Front government with LFI “.
The same story is heard from some of Macron’s leaders who are looking for an alternative to the left to govern. For example, Gérald Darmanin also said he was ready to make significant concessions by turning to the right: “ There could be a right-wing prime minister, that wouldn’t bother me at all. “, declared the Minister of the Interior on CNews and Europe 1.
A new president and a new party name
Then some free electrons of the right, like Aurélien Pradié, deputy of Lot, leave the door open to the creation of a group in its own right. He had barely returned to the Assembly on Tuesday when he described in front of the cameras “LR” as a dead brand.
Creating a new party is, however, one of the rare ideas on which the Republicans agree, from Aurélien Pradié on the left wing, to Bruno Retailleau, on the most conservative wing. Indeed, between 30 and 40 LR deputies have planned to meet this Wednesday to designate their president and change the name within their group, after the alliance without consultation of their president with the RN before the first round.
Read alsoLegislative elections in France: a fragmented Assembly put to the test by the culture of compromise