No less than eight weeks after the second round of the legislative elections, François Hollande’s former Prime Minister Bernard Cazeneuve, whose name was being put to the test in recent days by the Elysée Palace for the post of Prime Minister, will be received by Emmanuel Macron on Monday 2 September.
This meeting, announced by Bernard Cazeneuve on Sunday morning before being confirmed by the Elysée, does not, however, constitute an appointment. It is part, the entourage of the Head of State specifies, within the framework of the “continuous consultations” For Matignon, it began on August 23, while the National Assembly has been divided into three blocs since July 7. Another contender, the president of Hauts-de-France, Xavier Bertrand – whose nomination would be a casus belli for both the president of the Les Républicains (LR) group, Laurent Wauquiez, and his counterpart from the National Rally, Marine Le Pen – will also be received, on Monday evening, by Emmanuel Macron.
Anxious to bring an air of national harmony to these consultations, the Head of State will host successively his two predecessors, François Hollande and Nicolas Sarkozy.
If François Hollande criticises Emmanuel Macron for having ruled out appointing the New Popular Front (NFP) candidate Lucie Castets to Matignon, this should not logically deter him from promoting his friend and former prime minister Bernard Cazeneuve.
Nicolas Sarkozy, on the other hand, contested on Friday in The Figarothe choice of the former mayor of Cherbourg, who, in his opinion, “He wears the robe of a dying Dutchman”and asked for one “right-wing prime minister”. Will the former President of the Republic’s offensive move the lines within the Republican right, which rejects any coalition or participation in the future government, even if it means letting Emmanuel Macron appoint a left-wing prime minister? This is what the Head of State will try to gauge on Monday.
Divided in casting
David Lisnard, mayor of Cannes (Alpes-Maritimes), member of LR and president of the Association of Mayors of France, estimated on Friday that “No one can ignore the national interest”in the context of “blockade” current policy.
“Staying at the door when it comes to getting the country out of stagnation is the best way to marginalize ourselves”adds LR MP for Indre Nicolas Forissier, who even says he is ready to participate in a Cazeneuve government, if the latter “He is in the process of rapprochement with social democrats and republicans”. While the unregistered MP for Lot Aurélien Pradié calls Sunday’s Tribune to one “bringing together patriots from the right and left into one government”.
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