PS boss Olivier Faure on Thursday defended the principle of his party’s independent candidacy for the European elections in June, while calling for “a common project and a single candidate for (the presidential election of) 2027”, in a Liberation interview.
Desired by the LFI troops of Jean-Luc Mélenchon, the idea of ??a common Nupes list was once again rejected by the socialist leader, in unison with EELV and the PCF, who also intend to rider alone.
“The left, even when it governed, was never united on European deadlines, a subject on which the sensitivities on the left are the most exacerbated”, recalls Mr. Faure, pointing out that this “did not put end to the government of Lionel Jospin” which brought together PS, Greens and Communists, and each of which had led its own list to the Europeans of 1999.
“Why should we question everything we have to do together because we are not united in an intermediate election?” Asks the PS First Secretary again. “The President of the Republic and his allies (MoDem and Horizons, editor’s note) have no agreement for the senatorials, no one imagines that this will put an end to their coalition”, he notes.
“I want the Socialists to speak out at the end of September,” added Faure, who inaugurated the PS university in Blois on Thursday. “But (the PCF and EELV) have already announced that they will leave alone: ??therefore, barring a major event, I do not see what would allow us to hope for a single list”.
“We are not a single party. I respect the strategic autonomy of my partners,” he insisted.
In view of the presidential election of 2027, the boss of the PS promises on the other hand to do “everything in (his) power to maintain the course of the rally of the left and environmentalists”. “It is imperative if we want to govern tomorrow. The rally for 2027 is not an option but an obligation”, he insists.
Mr. Faure also confirmed that he would go to the meeting organized by Emmanuel Macron with all the political forces, Wednesday in the Paris region. “We will come with our proposals. I heard the president talk about referendums, there is one all found … on pensions,” he warned.
In private Thursday evening, ex-president François Hollande, present in Blois, welcomed the positioning of Olivier Faure.
A PS list is “obvious”, according to the former head of state, who was opposed to the Nupes agreement. “We have to be able to show that the Europeans are an election where the Socialists necessarily have their place,” he noted.
But for François Hollande, who is “a candidate for nothing” while some would like to see him take the lead of the PS list, we need “the most attractive list possible”, not only from the different currents of the PS, but “to broaden maximum”, so that it is “capable of exceeding 10%”.
“We have to be ambitious in this campaign, we must mobilize our former ministers, mix experiences and renewal”, he added, referring in particular to Stéphane le Foll or Bernard Cazeneuve, who left the party.
The latter seemed to take a step towards Olivier Faure on Wednesday in an interview. “What Bernard Cazeneuve must hear is that it is impossible to imagine that the unity of the PS is built against the unity of the left”, replied Olivier Faure.
08/24/2023 21:42:14 – Paris (AFP) – © 2023 AFP
