At the inauguration of the European campaign HQ in mid-December, Marion Maréchal wore a broad smile alongside Eric Zemmour and a well-decorated Christmas tree. “We can be proud of the work already accomplished since we have been a true ideological compass. We must strengthen our base and increase it.”
Four months later, the garlands and the ambient optimism have been put away in the boxes. Because nine weeks before the election, and while Eric Zemmour travels this Saturday to Palavas-les-Flots, in Herault, the head of the Reconquête list is struggling to impose its mark and is stagnating in the polls. How can we explain this failed start to the campaign? Here are some answers.
The Bardella steamroller
Week after week, opinion polls confirm Jordan Bardella’s insolent lead for the European election on June 9. The head of the National Rally list, still tested at 31% in a interactive Harris poll this Thursday, crushes the competition to the right of the Macronist party. And he leaves only crumbs for François-Xavier Bellamy (LR, at 7%) and Marion Maréchal, tested at 6%. “We can see that mayonnaise doesn’t work at Zemmour,” jokes Gilles Pennelle, RN executive. People don’t believe it anymore. Jordan’s dynamic [Bardella] is such that patriots who want to win join us,” he smiles.
According to an Ifop survey, more than 40% of voters of Éric Zemmour in the first round of the 2022 presidential election could turn to the RN list in the European ballot. “For the moment, the balance of power is on their side, they imposed the useful vote,” says Reconquête.
Strategic quarrels
This delicate start to the campaign is also linked to differences at the head of the movement. Several media outlets have reported strong tensions between Eric Zemmour and Marion Maréchal over the strategy to adopt. “There are lively and vigorous debates,” recognized the boss of Reconquête on BFMTV last week. The former columnist criticizes his candidate for her leniency towards the president of her former party (Bardella, him again), whom she refuses to see as “an adversary”, believing even though they are “complementary”.
“Marion Maréchal comes from the RN. Even more so, she’s a Le Pen girl. So obviously, she does not have the same freedom as me in relation to her aunt, in relation to the party she comes from,” said Eric Zemmour on BFMTV. “I have always been free,” replied the candidate dryly. The two personalities would no longer speak to each other outside of campaign meetings, according to point, which describes two teams working in parallel within the same movement. “They talk to each other, talk frankly, but we are far from tensions,” the party says.
Difficult to exist (with Zemmour)
Some close to Marion Maréchal regretted in the press the omnipresence of Eric Zemmour in the campaign. The essential figure of Reconquête, who multiplies the outings, counts the precious speaking time of the movement in the media. His long 45-minute speech during the big launch meeting in March in Paris was barely shorter than that of his candidate. According to our information, he should also be present on the Reconquest list in an ineligible position. Enough to overshadow the one supposed to lead it, and who is struggling to emerge?
Not necessarily, believes support from the ex-journalist. “Marion is a mega-known figure, but some people don’t know her exact name, or think that she is on Bardella’s list…”, he regrets. “The debates will help to highlight it, to remind people that it is at Reconquête. There is an alchemy to be found in their duo,” adds this executive.
Mark your uniqueness
Within the party, we hope that the end of the campaign will allow all these details to be resolved. “We must return to the original Zemmourism to stand out from the RN. On immigration, on Islam, which is incompatible with the Republic, contrary to what the RN says,” breathes a member of the executive office of Reconquest. “We must also make it clear that there is no useful vote. We don’t care about slapping Macron, the goal is to have influence in the European Parliament. And Marion will have an important role in the conservative group (ECR),” he says.
In the event of a score below 5% next June, Reconquest would not have any elected representatives in the European Parliament. A new failure which would be attributed to Marion Maréchal as to Eric Zemmour. And which would darken their political future.