“I don’t give a damn about saving the parties,” bluntly declared government spokesperson Maud Bregeon (Renaissance) on LCI on Sunday, March 29, 2026, in an address to the leaders of political parties, specifically to that of the Republicans, Bruno Retailleau.
The Vendée candidate for 2027 argued on Thursday that “what could bring about the death of LR is the absence of our party in the presidential election”. A few days later in the JDD, he rejected any “soft synthesis, in the continuity of Macronism”. This contradicts a call made by 90 right-wing and center personalities in La Tribune Dimanche. Parliamentarians, ministers, and former ministers from Renaissance to LR, including MoDem and Horizons, urge their leaders to “dialogue” and “build” a “broad coalition”.
Potential Challenges for the Opposition
However, the path to a single candidacy seems very complicated to navigate, amid the ambitions of the leaders and the political and strategic differences. For instance, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and MoDem cadre, Jean-Noël Barrot, disagrees on the timing: “we would be wrong to rush into party alliances, we must first go through a period of assertion”, he stated on France 3.
It’s hard to imagine, today, a bridge between Gabriel Attal, leader of Renaissance, and Bruno Retailleau. The former even criticized the latter for positions that “slide towards the extreme right” and proposed a “liaison committee” with Horizons and MoDem, excluding LR.
A significant gap from the starting point that provides ammunition to the opposition: they are “people who have little in common, who want to keep their place,” dismissed RN deputy Jean-Philippe Tanguy, close to Marine Le Pen, on BFMTV.
In addition to the question of the political line, there is the difficulty of designating a possible common candidate, with some advocating for a primary while others prefer selection through polls. Senate President Gérard Larcher would rather favor a primary for the right and center with a common candidate by “November”. A close ally of Gabriel Attal remains optimistic: “What’s important is that there aren’t five in the end,” despite downplaying the polling lead of Édouard Philippe, “a candidate for a year and a half”. In a recent Elabe poll, Horizons’ leader is seen as the only one in his political space capable of beating the extreme right in the second round, still far ahead in estimations. He has “taken a serious option” but “twelve months is long” and “it doesn’t solve the issue of unity,” emphasized Maud Bregeon.
