It is with a statement, impeccable in form but full of innuendos, that the presidential party’s deputy “takes leave” from the municipal election.
He does so without hiding behind convoluted phrases but by opening the book and loudly affirming the truth.
In fact, the national bodies of his party have slow-cooked him, with no endorsement or response.
It is true, sometimes, silence says more than so many words. The Lords of the Vatican couldn’t have done better!
We can only wait for February 27 – the date of the list presentation – to better understand if, “in full independence” on his part, Christian Estrosi will grant a consolation prize to LREM and, in this case, who the beneficiaries will be.
We are three weeks away from the date to start submitting lists for the upcoming municipal elections, six weeks from the first round, and my movement En Marche! has still not made a decision on Nice, the 5th largest city in France.
At the same time, the outgoing Mayor, Christian Estrosi, elected for three decades to the City of Nice, loudly declares rejecting the support and values that our movement could bring him, thus making any co-construction of a common project for Nice and the rallying of any sincere marcher to the values of our movement impossible.
This lack of announcement stifles the necessary momentum for the En Marche project in Nice and the Alpes Maritimes for the municipal elections, an important strategic level for the local establishment of our movement, which has been my motivation since June 2019, the date of the announcement of my candidacy.
The conditions are no longer met for my candidacy to find an echo and allow for campaigning seriously and serenely.
I therefore today make the decision to withdraw from the upcoming municipal elections.
This is not what I wanted as I believe it necessary in the name of the general interest to renew the practices of Nice’s politics.
The absence of a list from the Presidential Party makes Nice again subject to political exception even though the “local political software” requires a real update. The insider politics maintained in Nice for decades offers today no possibility of a paradigm shift.
I do not forget where I come from and what Emmanuel MACRON and our movement have enabled me to achieve. They gave me the opportunity, I, an engaged citizen who was not an old political hand, to be elected as a deputy of France.
Every week, I honor this mandate with passion and pride on behalf of the people of Nice and all Maralpins. I am a man of convictions and a man of loyalty. Even if disagreements can and should be expressed freely, the collective must remain a priority.
I warmly thank all the progressives, the democrats, those who, from all backgrounds, have mobilized alongside me for this municipal project. Their motivation, their sincerity, their actions make me think that the next choice will be the possible one.
This municipal sequence shows us the difficulty our young movement faces in succeeding its local establishment. We must all collectively learn from it to understand what didn’t work this time but what will work tomorrow for the upcoming departmental, regional, and national electoral deadlines.
That is why I make a commitment today, to redouble efforts to structure the local action of our movement, to bring out the talents of our territory, and to bring projects to fruition that this city and the people of Nice deserve.
Cédric Roussel
