Away from internal disputes, Ségolène Royal, on Saturday at the Aston Hotel in Nice, played the role of peacemaker in front of the socialist militants and supporters from the department. Between humility (“I see what the polls say but that gives me no rights. It only gives me responsibilities and duties.”), a strong message to Jacques Chirac (“True courage is not in stubbornness but in resuming social dialogue and in the humility to accept mistakes”), and harsh criticism of Nicolas Sarkozy (“We are dealing with a firefighter who is also an arsonist, a security illusionist, an interior minister who pits people against each other.”), the president of the Poitou-Charentes region, standing serenely behind her lectern, sought to demonstrate that she would be the ideal socialist candidate for 2007. Meanwhile, as the electoral deadlines of November (vote of the socialist militants) and May 2007 approach, Nice-Première recounts the royal Saturday of Ségolène in Nice.
“I come at the invitation of the socialist federations to meet the activists, but it is also a meeting with citizens who today want to think, work, and prepare for the future. I am here to dialogue, to answer questions and to listen,” Ségolène Royal justifies her journey in PACA (Friday night in Vitrolles, Saturday noon in Salon-de-Provence). A justification that positions her far from the presidential race. Her visit to Nice soil is a simple encounter between a Socialist Party official and militants. With the upcoming deadlines, first within the PS and then the presidential elections, the aspiring candidate tested her popularity. Ségolène Royal accepts it serenely and sets herself the goal of being worthy: “I recognize the sympathy capital, but I do not rush the steps. Polls do not make an election. It gives me an obligation and duties. I have the responsibility not to disappoint, to be up to this expectation, to work hard and to properly exercise the functions that are mine in the region of Poitou-Charentes. People want the function for which one has been designated to be performed properly.”
From the Place du Palais de Justice where she held a press briefing to the Aston Hotel, where the meeting was held, surrounded by Patrick Allemand, vice-president of the regional council and president of the federation 06 of the PS, Marc Concas, general councilor, and Frédérique Grégoire, municipal councilor, the slender deputy from Deux-Sèvres attracts the attention of bystanders surprised to see “the lady who does politics and who we see on TV.” This short walk allowed her to take some fresh air before entering the Aston Hotel with its too narrow walls and rarefied air. A too small room, won over to the Royal cause and the euphoric audience. The socialist militants came to see and listen to the woman who represents for them the hope of having again a president at the Élysée twelve years after François Mitterrand. For more than an hour, Ségolène Royal delivers her program. All themes are addressed: Education, Insecurity, Ecology, Justice and especially the current crisis: “In no country in the world would we take the risk of reforming the labor code without having previously discussed it with social partners.” She addresses Jacques Chirac directly: “True courage is not in stubbornness but in resuming social dialogue and in the humility to accept mistakes.”
She reiterated her hope in the power of politics to make the world a better place: “The scope for political action is significant. The power of hope can always prevail over the economic laws that pull downwards. We need everyone to rebuild this future, to restore young people’s confidence in their prospects, to ensure that everyone has a job from which they can decently earn a living to raise their family and to access culture and leisure.” It is this ambition that nourishes her program that she developed this Saturday in Nice. With sobriety, both in her appearance and her words, she avoided any controversy towards the other socialist candidates for the nomination.
Will the socialist militants vote for her in November? Those present in Nice at the Aston Hotel seemed charmed. They wanted to see and listen to Ségolène Royal, the one everyone talks about. They were treated to a determined, ambitious, and serene Ségolène Royal. Will she be “their candidate” in 2007? Response in November…
