As the regional political world has been in turmoil for a week following the announcement of a possible agreement between Les Rรฉpublicains and the presidential majority LREM, the outgoing president of the Sud Provence-Alpes-Cรดte d’Azur region, Renaud Muselier, announced that he would submit his list for the regional elections this Wednesday, and notably confirmed that he would place the mayor of Nice at the head of the candidates in the Alpes-Maritimes.
The outgoing president of the Regional Council (LR), true to his principle of “adding up from the first round,” despite strong reluctance within his party, offers a list “open to all sensibilities and competencies. This is my list, it is not dictated by anyone, I take responsibility for it.”
His list will be open to “reasonable” Greens. “This is a regional battle, not a national one. I don’t want a national debate. I am LR but I work for my South region. There are permanent ulterior motives here to see how the presidential elections will go, but that’s not the debate. I am not into wheeling and dealing or arrangements.”
And this, “in accordance with what I have said, what my political family has said at the national level, there will be no ministers, no parliamentarians, and no merging on my list. This hysteria has lasted long enough. I want us to be 100% regional,” he stated.
Without much surprise, his list includes some of his MoDem elected officials already in office within his majority, but also individuals clearly marked as La Rรฉpublique en Marche.
Renaud Muselier confirmed that the Secretary of State for Disabled Persons, Sophie Cluzel, LREM’s leading candidate for the regional elections on June 20 and 27, was not included. However, the ongoing negotiations could lead to a new change. It is possible she will not propose an autonomous list, leaving her supporters to align with Renaud Muselier.
In the Alpes-Maritimes, Christian Estrosi takes the opportunity to include his deputy, Graig Monetti, chief of staff to the Minister of Higher Education Frรฉdรฉrique Vidal, and a rising star in the Nice political scene.
The senator from Le Cannet and outgoing Vice-President in charge of transportation, Philippe Tabarot, opposed to expanding the list to include representatives of other political groups besides LR (“a mistake and a bad political calculation”), is not included.
