Anne Hidalgo widens the gap with her competitors. In an Ifop poll published in the JDD this Sunday, the PS mayor of Paris remains clearly at the head of voting intentions in the municipal elections: if the first round took place today, it would win 25% of the vote.
Rachida Dati, the LR candidate, would come in second position with 19%, ahead of the LREM candidate Benjamin Griveaux (15%), the ecologist David Belliard (14%) and the dissident LREM Cédric Villani (13%).
"Cédric Villani can no longer pretend to prevail"
Bad news for the macronist camp whose score appears to be declining (-2 points for Griveaux, -1 for Villani) compared to the previous poll carried out in December, and all the more that for the first time, its official pretender goes into third position behind Rachida Dati.
In the entourage of Benjamin Griveaux, it is claimed to take "with a lot of distance" this survey "carried out just after the week of announcement of the candidacy of Anne Hidalgo with great media support". We also want to believe that "those who want to go beyond the left-right divide are in the majority", because if their scores are added up, Benjamin Griveaux and Cédric Villani together account for 28% of the votes.
However, the time for reconciliation seems far from having come for the two adversaries. Because from the point of view of Benjamin Griveaux, Cédric Villani remains the first culprit of these disappointing results: his maintenance in the race at the Town Hall "contributes to re-elect Anne Hidalgo", reacts the entourage of the candidate. Who therefore calls the dissident to enter the rank. “Cédric Villani is not in the lead, and can no longer pretend to prevail. Benjamin will therefore continue to gather. It is now Cédric Villani's turn to take responsibility. ”
"Griveaux was never the solution but the problem in this election"
Yes, but ... Around Cédric Villani, the teams remain confident and united. "Without a machine or a party, without public support from any minister, without funding, Cédric Villani remains at 13%, an unprecedented level for an independent candidate in Paris", reacts his entourage. Armed with this satisfaction, the dissident candidate has no intention of withdrawing from the race. "He can be present everywhere in the second round (threshold of 10%), unlike Benjamin Griveaux who can fall below 10% in left districts", continues the entourage of Cédric Villani. Who returns the accusation made by his rival: "We have to open our eyes at some point: Griveaux was never the solution but the problem in this election if we want to win Paris".
“Despite the support of government ministers, the state apparatus and the LREM party, despite considerable financial and human resources, Benjamin Griveaux continues to plunge irreparably. However if the film of this election is Hidalgo-Dati, we all know the end of it: Anne Hidalgo will be re-elected, with the same calamitous management of the city ”, says a close friend of Cédric Villani.
Paris Newsletter
Every morning, the news of your department seen by Le ParisienI'm registering
Your email address is collected by Le Parisien to allow you to receive our news and commercial offers. Find out more
Although they share the same observation, no question therefore for the two opponents to drop ground. "The only one who is still able today to bridge the gap between environmentalists and progressives to win is Cédric Villani", supports the entourage of the "free" candidate who is about to promote his new book "The New Paris: let's turn the City of Lights back on", starting next Wednesday.
