Bruno Retailleau and Laurent Wauquiez: Who will oust the other for the presidency of LR?

Between us, it was time for this campaign for the presidency of LR to end. The two candidates being more or less in agreement on the substance, they had to, to stand out from each other, outbid each other, make an impression by all possible means. So, toss the rule of law, "not intangible, nor sacred", if we are to believe Bruno Retailleau . And why not, while we are at it, send foreigners under OQTF to Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon , if we have understood Laurent Wauquiez correctly. The presidency of LR, in the minds of the two men, is only a stepping stone to the 2027 presidential election, hence their temptation to rake in the far-right's territory now. After all, the boundary between the two parties has become fragile: the previous president of LR, Eric Ciotti, did not hesitate to ally himself with the RN during the last legislative elections before leaving office to create his own far-right party.

The profiles and positioning of the two candidates speak for themselves. The spiritual son of sovereignist Philippe de Villiers, a practicing Catholic and very conservative, Bruno Retailleau did not flourish by chance at the Ministry of the Interior. The former senator from Vendée takes a hard line on security issues, and not only for electoral reasons. He objectively played a rather good role by joining the government. He, the eternal second-in-command, suddenly stepped into the spotlight. The same cannot be said of Laurent Wauquiez, who thought he was protecting himself by taking over as president of the LR group in the National Assembly: ultimately, he failed to make an impact. And his ultra-right-wing remarks are nothing new. In 2017, Xavier Bertrand left LR when Wauquiez took over as party leader, accusing him of "chasing the National Front." Bruno Retailleau is currently holding the lead, according to the polls, but the record increase in membership in recent weeks could cause a surprise. History has shown that the presidency of the LR can drive people crazy and that anything is possible.