Elected in December 2022 at the head of the Les Républicains (LR) party, Eric Ciotti will appoint Aurélien Pradié and François-Xavier Bellamy to the positions of vice-presidents within a “gathering team” which earned him criticism from Bruno Retailleau as soon as he was presented on Wednesday January 18.
“I wanted this management team to be (…) the reflection of the rediscovered unity”explained to Figaro the new president, elected in the second round with 54% of the votes, a measured success forcing him to find a clever balance in the organization chart.
The deputy of Lot Aurélien Pradié had gathered 22% of the votes in the first round by promoting a “popular right”. MEP François-Xavier Bellamy is a close friend of Bruno Retailleau, finalist in the election, who had convinced 46% of members in the second round.
Rachida Dati promoted
Bruno Retailleau himself refused any “major responsibility” pour “focus on chairing the group in the Senate”according to Mr. Ciotti, but the senator from Vendée reacted curtly to the announcement of this organizational chart, in the evening, considering that it “does not take into account the balances resulting from the ballot. Our agreements are not respected. I regret. Trust is the essential prerequisite for unity”he added on Twitter.
@ECiotti’s organization chart does not take into account the balances resulting from the ballot. Our agreements are not respected. J… https://t.co/MDHAUrNnHb
The organization chart sees the promotion of Rachida Dati, “undoubtedly the most popular figure in our political family today”, at the head of the national council. The former Sarkozy minister “also embodies the hope of seeing us conquer the capital”what “will be a major step towards national victories”says Eric Ciotti.
Annie Genevard, who had acted as interim head of LR, will become secretary general, and the former European negotiator for Brexit, Michel Barnier, will be in charge of international relations. As for the deputy of the Alpes-Maritimes Michèle Tabarot, a close friend of the new president, she will chair the national commission of investiture, a strategic position hitherto occupied by Eric Ciotti himself.
« Shadow cabinet »
The strategic committee will continue to integrate the « great figures » of the party such as Laurent Wauquiez, Xavier Bertrand or Valérie Pécresse, as well as, on the Parliament side, Gérard Larcher, Bruno Retailleau and Olivier Marleix. The president of the movement intends to appoint ” in the coming days “ and « shadow cabinet » or shadow government, of about twenty members. “We are an opposition party with the vocation of once again becoming a party of government and of the right. We are not intended to be the auxiliaries of a power that is coming to an end”believes the new boss of LR.
Regarding pensions, he repeated that a reform “is essential in the interest of the country”. More “we always have requests to improve the situation of young retirees”, he adds on the eve of a day of mobilization against this reform. Asked about Gérald Darmanin’s future immigration bill, Eric Ciotti assures us that he will vote “against this text”, which he describes as “decoy” and of “the result of a bad compromise”.
In a party struggling with public funding since the debacle (4.8% of the vote) of the presidential election, Eric Ciotti also claims to have, with the treasurer Daniel Fasquelle, “open a discussion” on the move of the seat. As for the timetable for the appointment of the future LR presidential candidate in 2027, “I will respect Laurent Wauquiez’s choice, but I don’t think we should get out of the woods too late”he said.