“I have never renounced my responsibilities”

The president of MoDem explained this morning on France Info about his refusal to join the government. And let it be known that the 2027 presidential election will be a decisive moment for the country.

Obviously, François Bayrou is angry. The president of MoDem was a guest on France Info this morning, the day after his resounding announcement of his refusal to join the government. Should we understand that there is a political break between François Bayrou and the top of the executive? Can the MoDem, ally of the majority, experience a crisis of governance?

This Thursday, on France Info, François Bayrou gave some explanations. “I was ready to enter the government, the Ministry of National Education, because I thought that the crisis was deep and deserved a deep commitment”, but the Béarnais assures that he did not have the guarantees to work with the directions he wanted. The president of MoDem also had the ambition to take on other responsibilities, relating to the democratic crisis. “When we have such a deep crisis in the country, between the circles of power and the base of the French, we must act,” he said, adding that Emmanuel Macron “shares part of this analysis, but the Actions should follow words.

“We, MoDem, who participated in the development of the majority, this has been our concern from the start. We cannot let this risk of rupture between the French and forms of technocratic powers grow,” added the former and short-lived Minister of Justice. And to carry a message, the one he carried during Emmanuel Macron’s first campaign: “You saw correctly, there is a political imbalance (between right and left, Editor’s note). There is a drift. It is time to remember why we are here. We said in 2017 that we were going to govern differently. I now hear MoDem deputies telling me that they have the impression of working exactly as before. In the recovery of the country, the MoDem is engaged on the front line. But I see that we are acting as if the crisis does not exist. We at MoDem have a fairly ambitious project to reduce this crisis.” While indicating that his party remained an ally of Renaissance: “We are a full member of the majority which wants to rebuild the country”.

Unsurprisingly, François Bayrou suggests that his candidacy for the next presidential election is on the table. “The challenge of 2027 is that we manage to reconcile France below and France above. We must find a way.” When asked about his candidacy, he replied: “I have never renounced the responsibilities that are mine. I am an elected official from the most remote province in the country, I know the difficulties of the French.[…] I say that the movement that we are experiencing is essentially a deviation. Let’s fix them. Let’s correct them now, with the majority, with the government.” Are you setting a date for 2027?” insisted the journalist. François Bayrou no longer hides: “It’s not me who sets the date, it’s the country”.