Nicolas Sarkozy is clear: he wants a Prime Minister from the right. Out of the question retorts François Bayrou, the president of the Modem and ally of Emmanuel Macron, who intends to preserve the original “DNA” of macronism of overcoming divisions… The prospect of a reshuffle becoming more and more precise, the tension is mounting, Emmanuel Macron’s allies and evening visitors are making their voices heard, letting it be known and speculation is in full swing.
Some openly campaign for the departure of Elisabeth Borne. “We have to change the prime minister. France is on the right, we need a right-wing prime minister,” Nicolas Sarkozy told Le Parisien. According to “L’Express”, he met Emmanuel Macron on June 6.
Bayrou does not want an “RPR restoration government”
Even if he has not spared Elisabeth Borne since his appointment, François Bayrou does not want this shift to the right. “Some dream of an RPR restoration government, not me. Let’s not lose our DNA”, dropped in “Figaro” the one who did a lot for the election of Emmanuel Macron by giving up a fourth presidential candidacy in 2017.
“Everyone talks about a right turn, I’m opposed to the right turn as well as the left turn […] A turn would be the opposite of what we proposed, “he said again this Sunday to the” Grand Jury “on RTL. If the struggles for influence are a clic before the redesign, the fact of seeing them spread out in broad daylight is a little less so. Despite fresh relationships, Emmanuel Macron also saw his former Prime Minister Edouard Philippe, as revealed by “Le Figaro”.
Invisible or weakened ministers
Everything is accelerating, and the very idea of a reshuffle is no longer in doubt. At the “Grand Jury”, François Bayrou admitted that there was “possible progress” to obtain a “strong” government, admitting that the current one is weak. Some ministers – Pap Ndyaye (Education), Christophe Béchu (Ecological transition), François Braun (Health), Jean-Christophe Combe (Solidarity) – are struggling to impose themselves, others are perfectly invisible, not to mention the vulnerable, as Marlene Schiappa . “Fundamentally, the problem is not related to Elisabeth Borne but to the architecture of the government. It is a government of technos and weak politically whereas the Parliament became very political , estimates a Renaissance parliamentarian.
The Head of State multiplies the consultations while the Secretary General of the Elysée, Alexis Kohler, meets several ministers. Members of the majority are also polled. “I find it hard to imagine that he does nothing with the end of the hundred days because there are weak links”, admits a heavyweight minister. The reshuffle should also mark the end of the hundred-day period, during which Emmanuel Macron intends to definitively turn the page on the painful pension reform .
The behind-the-scenes maneuvers are in full swing. ” We close the retreats page and, more generally, economic and social reforms. We are going to go more towards societal subjects such as education or health, which requires new faces and a new breath, ”decrypts a very close friend of Emmanuel Macron.
The fate of Borne divides
Cornerstone of this reshuffle, the fate of Borne divides, while the intentions of the President of the Republic remain unfathomable. Some are convinced that she will remain for lack of a better candidate, others ure that Emmanuel Macron wants to change her and that he is looking for the rare pearl to replace her. “His number one choice is to change it but he is not sure to find better”, summarizes a relative. “The majority of Renaissance deputies want Borne to be maintained, but there is clearly an offensive from those who, with an alliance with Les Républicains, want to recreate a new-look UMP”, pleads for his part a Renaissance deputy favorable to its maintenance. . According to a BVA poll for RTL, 60% of those questioned want Emmanuel Macron to change Prime Minister.
Among the names circulating to replace her, four come back insistently: those of the ministers from the right Gérald Darmanin (Interior) and Sébastien Lecornu (Defence). “Darmanin and Lecornu want to bring down Borne. But if one of the two is named, it will rock the majority, from the left wing to the Modem”, warns a “historic channel” deputy.
The hypothesis of a swing to the right to anchor the Republican deputies is far from unanimous, especially since the party of Eric Ciotti was clearly in opposition Saturday during his states general in Paris. This Wednesday, the leaders of Renaissance, the presidential party, must debate the question of a possible alliance on the right.
That of the former Minister of Agriculture Julien Denormandie is also circulating, but it is not unanimous. “Appointing to Matignon a former chief of staff of Emmanuel Macron at Bercy would show more of a tightening than a desire for enlargement”, notes a relative. That of Richard Ferrand is also cited. Beaten in the last legislative elections, the former president of the National embly and very close to Emmanuel Macron lets the mystery hang. “I’m more of a veteran than a wannabe. With regard to rumours, anything that flatters the ego must be considered with circumspection and gratitude,” he told Le Figaro this Sunday.
The calendar remains a mystery, but many are anticipating a reshuffle – with or without a change of prime minister – before July 14, the official 100-day deadline. “It’s more and more likely,” admits a relative. But until nothing is official, all options remain on the table.