The announcement was made on Friday at the very start of a Marseille city council. “I have decided to support Mr. Emmanuel Macron for the presidency of the French Republic, launches Martine Vassal, the LR president of the departmental council of Bouches-du-Rhône and the metropolis of Aix-Marseille. President of the Republic, President of the European Union, at the heart of a storm unprecedented since 1945, he is now the only one who can give hope to the French. »
The Federation of Republicans of the Bouches-du-Rhône thus finds itself once again deprived of a leader. Martine Vassal had indeed been leading the party’s largest federation in France for a few months, the post having been vacated by… Renaud Muselier, who left LR to support Emmanuel Macron a few months later. The president of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region replaced until then… Bruno Gilles, a time various right before recently becoming the local boss of Horizons, the party of Edouard Philippe, and to take advantage of his vast network at the service of the President of the Republic in the race for the Elysée.
“We expected this rallying of Martine Vassal, we sigh on the side of the national leadership of the Republicans. She was one of those elected officials from the south who did not hide, or covertly, their support for Emmanuel Macron. There is also Falco, Estrosi… ”The mayors of Toulon and Nice, two former LR heavyweights in Paca, indeed left the party in May 2021, to serve the interests of the President of the Republic. “The fact that executive presidents come forward can help, notes Pascal Chamassian, head of communication for the presidential majority in the Bouches-du-Rhône. They have an influence, whether we like it or not. It creates a movement that infuses, above all. That’s what’s important. »
“An ideological divide” between pro-Ciotti and moderates
Indeed, the list of these major mayors and other elected Provençal LRs who take up the cause of Emmanuel Macron continues to grow. Thus, this week, in a forum, no less than 250 elected officials from the entire Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region have called for support for Emmanuel Macron. Like Arnaud Murgia, this mayor elected under the LR label at the town hall of Briançon in the Hautes-Alpes, close to Bruno Le Maire, who defines himself as a “baby UMP, baby Sarko”.
“It just means that in Provence, we are more advanced than the others, as often, analyzes the city councilor with a smile. The right must be rebuilt. This trend that we see in Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur is the culmination of five years during which the right has not been up to par. She failed to find her place in the opposition and create an intelligent political line. »
“I see an ideological divide among the LRs, between those who are for Ciotti and those who are for a more moderate right, says a connoisseur of Marseille political life. And we are also perhaps in a region where the discourse of Eric Zemmour and the national right is more significant in the population. This accelerates the movement of decomposition of the right. “The regional had already been a first example of this gathering beyond the divisions, recalls Pascal Chamassian. Faced with the danger of the extreme right, in Paca, we had already triggered this movement. “Renaud Muselier had indeed publicly obtained the support of Jean Castex, causing strong tensions and splits.
Fracture and invoice
“Members will not follow Martine Vassal or Renaud Muselier, however, we want to believe in the management of LR. These elected officials are in purely political considerations. If they take the plunge, it is because the President of the Republic has come to this region a lot, has dealt with these elected officials. Feeling treated, they made the choice to leave Les Républicains. “Mr. Macron is double champion of the fracture and the bill, accuses Didier Réault, vice-president of the metropolis, and long-time companion of Martine Vassal. He is now fracturing the whole of French political representation with bills, promising millions to each other’s communities. So of course…”
The President of the Republic has indeed recently announced massive state aid in Paca, whether through his plan for Marseille, or in the financing of the New Line, for example. “With the large-scale Marseille plan, our schools, our transport, housing, safety for all, culture for our children, in these troubled times, we have not been forgotten”, rejoiced Martine Vassal during the the announcement of his rallying.
“We are already on the next step”
“I had six more national police officers in Briançon, Arnaud Murgia list. I was able to benefit from the recovery plan. This government has done the job. We must recognize it. ” ” It’s not a calculation, refutes Pascal Chamassian. On the other hand, it can prove that even when we do not necessarily have a political anchor, we are able to help a territory. That can be seductive. »
Rumors suggest that Emmanuel Macron would hold his first meeting next weekend… in Marseille. With new rallies in sight? “There will be others, predicts Bruno Gilles. We are already on the next step. From the evening of the first round, there will be those who will call to vote Emmanuel Macron, after a catastrophic score from Valérie Pécresse. “In the meantime, the LRs who remain are suffering and are trying not to sink. “It’s hard, breathes Ludovic Perney, deputy secretary general of the Republicans, and leader of the Young Republicans in the Bouches-du-Rhône. Each day has enough trouble of its. There will be reconstruction work. But it will be long. After darkness comes light…”