The senator of Hauts-de-Seine Hervé Marseille was elected this Saturday president of the UDI to replace Jean-Christophe Lagarde, during a vote in congress where he was the only candidate. The boss of the Union of Democrats and Independents (UDI) group in the Senate, 68, has been acting in this position since the resignation on October 20 of Jean-Christophe Lagarde, weakened by legal troubles. Jean-Christophe Lagarde had already stepped down from his duties after his defeat in the June legislative elections.
The new boss of the party paid tribute to his predecessor “who made this gesture”, as well as to Jean-Louis Borloo, founder of the party and exceptional guest of this congress in Boulogne-Billancourt. “This is the beginning of the movement to regroup humanist and republican forces in our country”, had previously launched Jean-Louis Borloo, applauded standing at the end of his speech.
Revive the party
Hervé Marseille has drawn up a roadmap to revitalize the party that has fallen to 10,000 members, against 30,000 when it was created: it will be necessary to “change the statutes” and work on regional structures, assured the elected official from Hauts-de-Seine. “We will have to take advantage of this year without an election” to carry out this work, he added.
Welcoming Emmanuel Macron’s interest in the Liot group (to which the UDI belongs to the Assembly), he recalled that “we are responsible and independent”. “We are ready to work on the necessary texts for the country, to make majorities and essential coalitions” but “we will not be made to do what we do not want”, he warned.
Pensions, immigration…
On pensions as well, “it is not enough to measure the age” because “if we go into force, it will be bad”. Calling for reflection on long careers and hardship, he also wondered about the 35 hours: “if we worked half an hour more per week, would that unlock the age measurement? »
On immigration, which will be the subject of a bill at the start of the year, “we are going to work on the text, not to say no on principle” but “the main thing that we can do is is at European level,” he recalled, emphasizing the European DNA of the centre-right party. “Being centrist means having a social vision of society,” he added, lamenting “two major absences in the budget (currently being examined): dependency and housing.”
The game of alliances
“We are going to weigh because we are going to build project majorities”, had previously affirmed the vice-president UDI of the Senate Valérie Létard. While the LR allies are also electing their president this weekend, Mr. Marseille recalled that “they are the ones who vote (the members), but the consequences are for everyone”.
“We will wait to find out what their political line is” and their attitude towards the partners: “At one time, they spoke of the right and the center, today it is the right which speaks to the right” but “if it goes too far to the right, we know what happens, take a quick look behind the Alps”, he said, while Eric Ciotti and Bruno Retailleau are in the running at LR.