End of suspense Friday… at the latest. After months of cleverly maintained mystery, Édouard Philippe will finally lift the veil on his candidacy for municipal elections in Le Havre. A room has been rented in the city center of the port city for a campaign launch meeting in the evening at 7 p.m. Five personalities launched the invitations: Antoine Rufenacht, the local tutelary figure, who, in 2010, had yielded his chair as mayor to the Prime Minister, Jean-Baptiste Gastinne (LR), the current occupant of the town hall, the Senator Angès Canayer, MP Agnès Firmin Le Bodo and… Édouard Philippe himself. A sacred signal. Even if those close to the Prime Minister still apply to spare the element of surprise: "If he launched, he could also announce his candidacy before, either in the local press or in another form. All options remain open, ”says an intimate. "His decision, he reserves it for the people of Le Havre," sweeps Matignon.
Nothing has yet leaked out of Philippe's intentions, who gave himself up until the end of January to make his decision public. "The last time I told him about it, he was still thinking. He says what his inclination is, without being completely affirmative, ”swears Agnès Firmin Le Bodo, who succeeded him at the Assembly. He has spoken about it privately to the President of the Republic in recent weeks. He also poured out to a very limited circle: his longtime friend Gilles Boyer, his cabinet director in Matignon, Benoît Ribadeau-Dumas, and the deputy Thierry Solère.
Heading list even quits after the victory?
Last week, he also had lunch with his former mentor Antoine Rufenacht with whom relations have been very fresh since his entry into Matignon. "It was very friendly," says a relative of the Baron Le Havre. He spoke with his successor at the town hall, Jean-Baptiste Gastinne. On Monday, the latter brought together the councilors of the municipal majority to enlighten them on the course of events.
Because even if the entry into the Prime Minister's campaign in Havre seems to be in no doubt for most of the local elected officials, nobody yet knows how he will fight. Head of list or simple running mate? "If he goes, it is to be at the top of the list," asserts a minister who has his entries in Matignon. "For me, if he returns, it is necessarily to be at the top of the list," adds Agnès Firmin Le Bodo. Leaving to resign if he was elected to return to rue de Varenne? "But if he plans to do this, it will have to be told to voters from the start," one of his relatives in Le Havre already considered a few weeks ago.
The challenge does not weaken in Le Havre
In any case, Philippe will have to reconcile the campaign with the office of Prime Minister. Nothing impossible in the eyes of those around him, who highlights his aura and his notoriety on the spot: “He will not need to knock on door-to-door morning, noon and evening. If he goes, it will be a campaign essentially organized on weekends, ”we already anticipate in Matignon.
Except that the current climate, against the backdrop of pension reform, is not necessarily an advantage. The port of Le Havre is regularly blocked and protests have followed one another since the start of the protest against the government's plan. "Friday evening, for the launch of the campaign, we expect demonstrations," said a relative. With the risk at the end of giving a national turn to the local ballot. “The opposition nationalizes the ballot and instrumentalizes the movement. Certainly because it is his only card to play, ”asserts the deputy mayor Florent Saint-Martin. “At the Assembly, we can also take the brunt of the criticism from opposition benches. Our adversaries will say: how can he defend the reform with his head in Le Havre? “Already dreads a macronie strategist.
But if Édouard Philippe is ready to embark on such a hassle, it is because he also has every interest in rubbing shoulders with a ballot, he who has not campaigned since 2014. “He needs it to legitimize himself . If he wins, he will emerge strengthened politically, ”asserts his entourage. A capital that could well serve him for the future. The Prime Minister - and rumors of a reshuffle after the municipal elections which continue to rustle are there to remind him - know very well that Matignon will not last a lifetime. As much not to insult the future. With one obligation, however, the key: victory.