“Which of us two…” The lyrics of M perfectly illustrate the situation in which the left in Nice will find itself until Sunday, September 9, which will be the deadline for candidacies for the nomination in the upcoming Nice municipal competition. Indeed, interested candidates will have from September 3 to 9 to announce their intentions before the primary that will be held on Tuesday, September 25. On the starting line are, of course, the two leaders of the Azurean Socialist Party, Patrick Allemand, Vice President of the PACA Regional Council and General Councillor, and Patrick Mottard, leader of Nice Plurielle (the current municipal opposition) and General Councillor, but more than a man, it is a team that the Nice socialist activists will choose, and that is precisely where the battle is currently raging.
Like the “transfer window” in football, each candidate is in the recruitment phase to build the team that will strengthen his candidacy. While Patrick Allemand can count on the support of the General Councillor and friend, Marc Concas, Patrick Mottard has the assured support of his wife, Dominique Boy Mottard, General Councillor of Alpes-Maritimes. Yes, but a list means convincing more than 60 people or even personalities, and that is precisely what the two candidates will strive to do in the coming days.
First, there are the socialist leaders such as Michèle Matringe, Paul Cuturello, Pierre Laigle, or Yann Librati, but it will also be necessary to consider other left-wing parties in Nice such as the Radical Left Party of Jean-Christophe Picard and Elodie Jomat, the Greens of Rémy Gaechter and Mari-Luz Hernandez-Nicaise, the Alternatives of Bruno Della Sudda, or the Communist Party of Simone Monticelli and Jacques Victor. In short, who will stand out from the big game of alliances and rapprochements, who can say at this time?
Of course, the passing of the general and municipal councillor, Jean-François Knecht, removes an option that seemed more than credible during his lifetime, and the team he had built around his project and ideas could substantially tip the socialist balance in favor of one candidate or the other. In short, nothing is decided yet, and the first week of September should be rich in insights regarding everyone’s intentions.
