“I will have the honor and responsibility to lead the Mouvement Démocrate list in Nice.” The emergency doctor Hervé Caël, 47 years old, officially announced his candidacy on Thursday afternoon during a press conference, which was announced on Tuesday by François Bayrou and the National Bureau of MoDem. Hervé Caël explains this choice: “There were six candidates for Nice. We presented ourselves several times in front of the National Bureau, which finally made a decision. Unlike other parties, the five other candidates will be present on the Nice Democrat list that I will lead.” The other burning question: Why didn’t MoDem ally with another list? The answer is based on an observation of the political situation in Nice: “There is a dominant, divided party that aspires to concentrate power, a divided opposition, but united behind the banner of systematic ‘no,’ caricatured political maneuvers that only aim to ensure certain mandates at the expense of defending the collective interest.” For the National Bureau and the local branches of the Mouvement Démocrate, there was enough space to express the ideas and values of François Bayrou’s party in Nice. Discussions took place between MoDem and other candidates, or even feelers sent through the press. Hervé Caël is direct: “We said no because in exchange for our alliance, they were asking for counter-favors.”
The detailed program and the list of 69 candidates will be unveiled in January or early February. Hervé Caël defined the main axes modeled on the MoDem concept: “Local action that respects sustainable development and solidarity, the necessity of reconciling the competitiveness of Nice with local policy, citizens who are responsible and involved in democratic debate, and elected officials who are free and independent.” The Nice Democrat list continues to work on its project for the capital of the Côte d’Azur on essential themes: the environment, neighborhood life, security, housing, cleanliness, tourism, traffic, community life, culture, sport, local referendum, debt, health… As for the list, it is being put together. There will be no surprises, with above all the desire to bring out new faces in local politics. One or two celebrities are hinted at. “They have a project for Nice and they love Nice,” assures the MoDem list leader.
Nice Démocrate enters the municipal race a few months after the others. The emergency doctor took his time. A handicap? Certainly. It is necessary to catch up with the media wagon. It is also necessary to make the new faces and this new way of conceiving politics known.
