Act two.
A few hours after having published a long message on his social networks to indicate that he would vote for Emmanuel Macron against Marine Le Pen, Nicolas Sarkozy puts a coin in the machine during confidences that the former President of the Republic granted in
Paris Match
.
In the first extracts broadcast Tuesday evening by the weekly, he explains, in a more free tone than in his official press release, the reasons which push him to support his successor.
Main reason, his political positioning: the candidate for his succession would have evolved "
towards the center right
" throughout the five-year term.
"
A large part of his ideas are now the same as
(theirs)", analyzes the former head of state.
To discover
LIVE - Presidential 2022: follow minute by minute the campaign for the second round
Presidential 2022: find here the result of the first round of the election
Second round: compare the programs of Macron and Le Pen
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A finding that pushes Nicolas Sarkozy to urge his camp to
"accompany"
Emmanuel Macron in a possible second five-year term.
While the former President of the Republic points in a pronounced way to the ideological rapprochement between his political family and the tenant of the Élysée, Nicolas Sarkozy is delighted:
“Who can complain about it?
Not me."
“
His good score in the first round… Isn't that the translation that some of the right-wing voters joined him?
“, He pretends to wonder when Emmanuel Macron came first in the first round on Sunday with 27.85% of the vote.
Pécresse's proposals "couldn't break through", says Sarkozy
An assumed proximity... and displayed on the front page of the newspaper which reveals the photo of the meeting between the two presidents on April 1 on the steps of the Élysée.
And this, while the first round had not yet passed and therefore Valérie Pécresse, candidate of the right, was still smooth in the Elysian race.
It must be said that the silence of Nicolas Sarkozy as to the one who wore the colors of the Republicans had become a real thorn in the side of the candidate LR in recent weeks.
If the former head of state did not even mention it in his message on Tuesday morning, he does not mince his words this time against the one who was his minister.
“Candidate LR chose to be very tough with candidate Macron but his proposals could not break through.
Valerie (
Pecresse)
could not, at the same time, accuse him of being the gravedigger of France and say that he took our ideas from us”,
he mocks in particular after the very low score of the president of the Ile-de-France region (4 .78%).
Read alsoSarkozy's support for Macron: towards a recomposition of the majority
In Tuesday morning's press release, Nicolas Sarkozy explained in chosen and flattering words that the President of the Republic was "
the only one in a position to act
":
"He has the necessary experience in the face of a serious international crisis that is more complex than ever , because its economic project puts the promotion of work at the center of all its priorities, because its European commitment is clear and unambiguous.”
Faced with the criticisms he anticipated in his camp, the one who was at the helm of France between 2007 and 2012 drove the point home:
“We are never wrong in choosing clarity and consistency.”
"
Loyalty to the values of the Republican right and to our culture of government must lead us to respond to Emmanuel Macron's call for a rally in view of the presidential election
, ”he added.
Faced with this support, the President of the Republic thanked him "
for his confidence and his support
": "
It honors me and it obliges me and therefore I think that we must gather very widely
".
Read alsoPresidential 2022: the French mostly approve of Sarkozy's non-choice, the voters of Pécresse condemn
Since the start of the five-year term, Nicolas Sarkozy and Emmanuel Macron have played on their good understanding.
The first, to always weigh on his camp and the affairs of the country.
The second, to use his predecessor, tutelary figure of the LRs, by further fracturing the right and sending signals to his voters.
Since Sunday evening, this political camp has been divided over the duel in the second round.
If the Republicans have taken a convoluted official position, some elected officials have announced their vote for Emmanuel Macron to block Marine Le Pen, when others will vote white … or suggest that they could support the RN contender.
A right caught in a pincer movement which could well be under tension again with Nicolas Sarkozy's offensive.