The deputy of the Alpes-Maritimes Eric Ciotti, holding a right-wing line, was elected Sunday, December 11 president of the Republicans with 53.7% of the votes, becoming the new boss of a party in deep crisis after the debacle of the presidential election. .
His opponent, the boss of LR senators Bruno Retailleau, won 46.3% in the second round of this internal ballot marked by a high turnout: 69.7%, against 72.67% in the first round.
The deputy of the Alpes-Maritimes Eric Ciotti, very firm on the sovereign, had come to the top of the first round, on December 4, with 42.73% of the votes, against 34.45% for the boss of the senators LR Bruno Retailleau (and 22.29% for Aurélien Pradié, eliminated).
The 91,110 members had to choose the successor of Christian Jacob who resigned in June, after elections which recorded the weakening of the right-wing party, which fell to 4.8% in the presidential election. In the final stretch, the members have multiplied trips and interviews to try to win an election much tighter than the previous ones, which had only been played in one round.
“I am on the right, I am proud of it and I will never apologize for it”, repeated Eric Ciotti again on Thursday during a public meeting in Paris. To influence his very marked image on the right, this specialist in migration issues had also spoken of the economy, speaking of abolishing inheritance and gift taxes, and lowering taxes and charges. His great campaign argument was Laurent Wauquiez, present Thursday evening at a public meeting in Paris. Eric Ciotti promises to quickly designate the president of the Auvergne-Rhône Alpes region as a presidential candidate if he is elected.