She announced on Sunday March 14 that she wanted to "turn the page" Laurent Wauquiez by running for the presidency of the Auvergne - Rhône-Alpes region.
Back in politics after four years of withdrawal, Najat Vallaud-Belkacem tackles a major challenge.
With a campaign to be imagined in an emergency, three months before the first round of the regional, after trying in vain to come to an agreement with environmentalists.
“We are not late, assures a relative.
Najat has been thinking about it since last summer, she knows exactly what she wants ”.
Nevertheless, everything has to be built for the former minister of François Hollande supported by the Socialist Party, the Radical Left Party, Cap Ecology and the Republican and Socialist Left.
As of Monday, she gathered her close team of ten people to outline her battle plan.
By first appointing two major socialist elected representatives of the region as campaign directors: Olivier Bianchi and Jean-François Debat, the mayors of Clermont-Ferrand (Puy-de-Dôme) and Bourg-en-Bresse (Ain).
The day before, she had chosen for her first trip, in a small committee, the Maison d'Izieu (Ain), a memorial to the exterminated Jewish children.
A symbol, since his opponent LR Laurent Wauquiez had considered reducing the subsidy of this place of memory at the start of his mandate, before backing down in the face of the challenge.
"The quintessence of what I fight in politics"
From the outset, the Socialist therefore places herself in the confrontation with the outgoing president.
“It is the quintessence of what I fight in politics, she confides to the Parisian - Today in France.
There remains the one who spoke about the
cancer of the assistantship
.
Many of its deliberations are voted on by the RN.
If we allow him to be renewed, he will place himself in pole position to lead this country one day.
We won't let that happen ”.
Olivier Bianchi abounds: “She embodies the inverted candidacy of that of Wauquiez.
It's going to be an image fight.
"
There is no question, however, of betting only on "everything except Wauquiez" for the head of the PS list which promises "a positive campaign".
In a context marked by the Covid-19, Najat Vallaud-Belkacem, who will be made available from his duties as director France of the anti-poverty NGO One, plans to increase the one-to-one meetings this weekend. with the economic, associative and cultural actors of the twelve departments of the region, some of which will be broadcast on social networks.
"It will be a more media and digital campaign than physical," recognizes the socialist, who is also considering virtual meetings.
A status of opponent to the executive
Its first proposals will be unveiled in early April.
But already, the candidate has made "the protection" of the population, especially young people, and job creation her priorities, wanting to make Auvergne - Rhône-Alpes "the leading region in Europe. in terms of well-being ”in ten years.
"We will not make the ecological transition without companies", adds Jean-François Debat.
A barely veiled spike in the direction of environmentalists led by Fabienne Grébert, with whom Najat Vallaud-Belkacem still hopes to find common ground before the first round or on the evening of it.
"In France rebellious and the Communist Party, some will join us", also assures the candidate, who will have to find 200 candidates for her list called "the Alternative".
In response to accusations of "parachuting" from the Wauquiez camp, the socialist's entourage insists on her ten years spent in the region where she began her political career, successively at the regional council, at the departmental council and then at the town hall of Lyon.
"She has woven an extremely dense network of friends and supporters that she has never ceased to see" assures a loved one.
Who adds that Najat Vallaud-Belkacem has "no more contacts" and broke politically with the former mayor of Lyon Gérard Collomb, of whom she was the deputy for four years, as the environmentalists.
The former minister also intends to take advantage of her status as an opponent of the executive.
"One year before the presidential election, voters may want to send a message," she slips.