His presidential adventure comes to an abrupt end.
With 7% of votes cast at the end of this first round, according to an Ifop estimate
,
Éric Zemmour is far from the threshold of the second round, as he could still hope a few weeks ago.
Faced with a defeat that he acknowledged during a long speech from the Maison de la Mutualité on Sunday evening in Paris, Éric Zemmour called on his voters to vote for his former competitor of the RN.
"
I have many disagreements with Marine Le Pen
,
but there is a man facing her who brought in two million immigrants
and who did not talk about immigration and identity during his campaign
", explains he in front of his supporters who applauded him heartily.
"
I won't be mistaken in opponent
, ”he says.
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LIVE – 2022 presidential results: Macron largely ahead of Le Pen, Zemmour calls to vote for the RN candidate
If his support may surprise after a kind of "primary" within the national right for several months, the leader of Reconquest indicates "
think of France above all
"
.
“
I cannot sit idly by in the face of the evils that threaten our country
,” he justifies himself.
By her rallying, the former candidate considers that "
there is something much bigger than (
them)", even if "
many of
(her)
voters will not want to vote for her
"
.
While the former nationalist pretender could, according to him, “
negotiate these few words
”, he hammers it: “
I am not a merchant.
»
“
I will continue to defend France and our ideas
”
Throughout his speech, Éric Zemmour also did not fail to thank “
the two million voters
” for the “
confidence
” and the “
strength
”
that
(they)
give him this evening.
“And to specify what he would do politically with this score:”
I will continue to defend France and our ideas, and I am sure that soon we will win.
I take each of your voices as the cry of a people who do not want to die.
»
If this result below the 10% mark can be disappointing for the one who was familiar with the second round in the polls, the boss of Reconquest!
is pleased with his journey with his audience: “
The fact that you were two million to support a man who started from scratch shows that my message has been heard.
Your voice can never again be neglected.
If he calls into question the absence of a campaign, he does not neglect his share of responsibility for all that.
"
I made mistakes, I assume them all
", recognizes Éric Zemmour, who displays his "
pride of not having become a politician
".
Before calling on his supporters to “
stay worthy
” and “
keep the faith.
»
Read alsoPresidential election 2022: the results of the first round
Despite a thunderous entry into the political arena since the fall of 2021 – which had allowed him to seriously compete with Marine Le Pen for several weeks – the campaign of the leader of Reconquête!
was hit hard by the Russian offensive in Ukraine.
Quickly caught up for his leniency towards Vladimir Putin, Éric Zemmour then saw his voting intentions drop in the polls according to firm declarations as to the reception of Ukrainian refugees.
Two strategies within the nationalist right
Leading a campaign very focused on migration and identity issues, the former nationalist pretender had built himself in opposition to Marine Le Pen's strategy.
Qualified in the second round with 23.3% of the vote against Emmanuel Macron, the latter had, on the contrary, bet on the theme of purchasing power to convince the popular categories.
In this kind of primary of the nationalist right, Éric Zemmour, neo-candidate and cantor of the union of the rights, did not know how to concretize his political project: to gather all the right, from the Republicans to the RN.
And this, despite a series of rallies staged over the weeks which,
in the end,
had no obvious impact on public opinion.
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Presidential 2022: the Reconquest candidate!
Éric Zemmour voted in Paris