LR Presidency: Bruno Retailleau wins easily against Laurent Wauquiez and enters the presidential race

With 74.3% against 25.7%, the more than 120,000 members of the Republicans placed their trust in the 64-year-old Vendéen, who since his arrival at Beauvau in September has given new impetus to a party that was moribund just a year ago. Turnout reached more than 80%.

"Unity is more necessary than ever, a guarantee of our credibility and the effectiveness of our action in the service of France," declared LR Secretary General Annie Genevard during the announcement of the results, in a call for unity in order to avoid the internal divisions that have undermined the right for more than a decade.

Prime Minister François Bayrou hailed this "magnificent victory." "I believe committed French people want us to join forces to free our country, as far as possible, from the difficulties it is experiencing," he said on X.

This election was marked until the end by the uncertainty caused by the increase in the number of members during the campaign, going from 43,859 to 121,617 in two months, without it being possible to determine with certainty who would benefit from these recruitments, carried out at full speed by the two candidates.

Bruno Retailleau's landslide victory comes at the end of a very right-wing campaign. His rival, Laurent Wauquiez, fired from all sides, notably proposing sending dangerous foreigners subject to an obligation to leave the territory (OQTF) to Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon and establishing a "sanitary cordon" around LFI.

Omnipresent on the subject of immigration, Bruno Retailleau has multiplied measures as Minister of the Interior, tightening the criteria for naturalization of foreigners and unsuccessfully calling for a showdown to force Algeria to take back its nationals subject to an obligation to leave the territory.

"I'm staying in Beauvau"

He was supported by the party's leading figures, from Senate President Gérard Larcher to MEP François-Xavier Bellamy, including presidential hopeful Xavier Bertrand and former presidential candidate Valérie Pécresse.

On the other hand, Laurent Wauquiez's arguments clearly did not resonate with many members, particularly the one that the presence of the LR president within the government would prevent him from having "free speech".

Bruno Retailleau has already announced that he will not give up Beauvau to devote himself solely to the presidency of the right, dismissing the argument of his rival who fears that this dual role will contribute to "diluting the right" in Macronism.

"I think that if I am elected on Sunday, the president of LR will strengthen the minister. And conversely, having this visibility will give strength to LR," he told AFP on the sidelines of his final rally on Friday in Nimes (Gard). Mr. Retailleau is scheduled to speak at 8:00 p.m. on TF1.

This success will allow Bruno Retailleau to strengthen his position as the right-wing candidate in the next presidential election, even though his rival has already called for a rematch next year to designate the right-wing presidential candidate in a primary limited to LR members.

An idea that is not shared by some of the minister's supporters, who did not wait for the results to apply pressure, like the centrist president of Normandy, Hervé Morin, spokesperson for the New Energy movement, chaired by David Lisnard.

In an article in Ouest-France on Saturday, he demanded that the right-wing candidate be "designated during a large open primary, from Renaissance to the Republicans."

What about Wauquiez?

Bruno Retailleau must now straighten out a party that is still recovering from the psychodrama of the alliance almost a year ago between its former president Eric Ciotti and the RN.

It also remains to be seen how Bruno Retailleau will get along with Laurent Wauquiez, the weakened leader of the LR deputies who is calling for a rallying of the right, ranging from the Minister of Justice, the ex-LR Gérald Darmanin, to the Zemmourist MEP Sarah Knafo.

Despite a busy schedule, Bruno Retailleau crisscrossed the country, organizing numerous rallies during the campaign. Faced with an opponent who claimed to have held 120 public meetings, the Vendée native opted for larger venues, such as the one he did a week ago in Boulogne-Billancourt (92), where he gathered nearly 2,000 people.