Nadine Morano does not take compliments easily. Renowned for her outbursts, the MEP indulged in a moment of tenderness after the televised debate of the heads of the European list, on May 21 on LCI. During a telephone exchange with Brice Hortefeux, she praised the incisive performance of François-Xavier Bellamy. She’s not the only one. As soon as the broadcast is over, the X account (ex-Twitter) of the leader LR relays the laudatory comments of political journalists invited by the channel to comment on this game. We applaud his “pugnacity” and the “precision” of an intellectual capable of “going there with a machete”.
Don’t throw any more away! Here is François-Xavier Bellamy showered with unprecedented praise. LR’s number 2 is especially used to being mocked for his conservatism, a supposed obstacle to the reconquest of the Macronist right, or his excessive caution. “Seize more of the news!, “Assert more and demonstrate less”… How many times has the elected official heard this advice that sounds like criticism? The man seems to have listened to them. A success of esteem surrounds his end of campaign.
“You have to come to the news, otherwise it won’t come to you”
Finally, he takes risks… and the media spotlight. His rant on France 2 against the organization of an Attal-Bardella debate exceeded five million views on X… and earned him the congratulations of his opponents. He criticizes a “staging of public service”, a symptom of an erasure of other political offers, in front of a taken aback journalist.
The elected official is offensive in the debates and multiplies the blows, such as an irruption at Sciences Po to denounce the blocking of the establishment by pro-Palestinian demonstrations. With, the key, an invitation to Cyril Hanouna and a debate on BFMTV opposite the LFI deputy Louis Boyard. And when he attacks the RN’s change of heart on the Caledonian issue, it is with a virulence which ensures him dry replies from Marine Le Pen and Jordan Bardella. So increased visibility. “He understood that as a challenger, you have to come to the news otherwise it will not come to you, greets the boss of the LR senators Bruno Retailleau. His campaign makes many of our parliamentarians and activists proud.”
The French are still insensitive to it. The candidate, credited with 7 to 8% of voting intentions, does not benefit from this change. The polls do not move, indifferent to the candidate’s attacks. Infuriating, as the sluggish campaigns of the head of the Renaissance list Valérie Hayer or Marion Maréchal open up a theoretical space for François-Xavier Bellamy. The candidate observed this discrepancy during a recent towing operation in Paris. “We like you, but LR, it’s not possible,” said passers-by, hardly willing to give their confidence to the heir of the UMP.
“This label is a burden”
During the 2007 presidential election, Arnaud Montebourg was ironic about François Hollande, Ségolène Royal’s “main fault”. What if The Republicans were Bellamy’s major flaw? Weakened by successive defeats, the right-wing party has lost its appeal. Also in readability, as when examining pension reform or during motions of censure against the government. Finally, LR does not have a first-rank presidential candidate in its ranks, despite the active preparation of Laurent Wauquiez and Xavier Bertrand. “This label is a burden,” laments an LR leader. A deputy, hardly suspicious of closeness with Bellamy, confirms: “It’s a beautiful sedan which drives on an upward slope, because the Europeans have never helped us. But with a restricted engine – a sclerotic and inaudible party for seven years – and behind her an outdated caravan, namely our list.”
Rather than a glass ceiling, François-Xavier Bellamy sees a “barrier to get around”. So, it is urgent to get rid of the LR vote. The head of the list thus insists on the major influence of the right in the European Parliament, countering the isolation of RN MEPs. Establishes the LR vote as a tool of power, far from its national weakness. These technical arguments still struggle to gain traction in public opinion. In the LR staff, we hope for a late crystallization of the voters’ choice. The movements of opinion are as massive as they are unpredictable in this election far from the French. The right collapsed in the final days of the 2019 campaign, why not hope for the opposite? “There is no good campaign that does not translate into good results,” assures Bruno Retailleau. The analysis seems like wishful thinking.
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