Members of President Emmanuel Macron’s party La Republique en Marche! (LREM) have expressed interest in negotiating with Marine Le Pen and the National Rally in the French parliament to form majorities to pass legislation.
Several LREM MPs have expressed interest in negotiating with Le Pen and the National Rally (RN), which won 89 seats in last weekend’s election and has become the main opposition bloc to President Macron’s faction, which failed to win a majority in the French parliament.
Céline Calvez, an MP for Hauts-de-Seine said negotiations may be needed with the RN saying, “As Olivia Grégoire [government spokeswoman] said when we need to have a majority, and if it’s good for the French, in fact, we will get these votes,” Public Senat reports.
The party of populist Marine Le Pen won a historic number of seats on Sunday as President Macron failed to maintain his parliamentary majority. https://t.co/t7kBHLQSeR
— Breitbart News (@BreitbartNews) June 20, 2022
Calvez was joined by Minister of Ecological Transition, Barbara Pompili, who added, “I doubt that we will be able to find compromises with the RN. I will always continue to fight their ideas. Now, on a number of topics, perhaps. We cannot afford to close ourselves. We must be able to discuss it with everyone.”
Sylvain Maillard, an MP for Paris, said the election showed the French public wanted the ruling bloc to negotiate with other parties saying, “The French have asked that we be more open to seeking majorities each time on each bill, whether it is the RN, or with others,” but ruled out any formal political alliance.
François Patriat, the leader of the Macron group in the French Senate, however, was less enthusiastic about working with the populist RN and Marine Le Pen saying, “Let me be clear, we are not discussing with the RN.”
“If the RN votes on the government’s texts, of course, it is their problem and their freedom. But I do not see today anyone from the presidential majority discussing with the RN to make compromises, whatever they are,” he added.
Marine Le Pen will be focusing entirely on her work in parliament, leaving the position of president of her party open.
I spoke to the mayor of Perpignan @louis_aliot , a senior member of the National Rally, about that and the election result. https://t.co/K1NP6m2wj6— Chris Tomlinson (@TomlinsonCJ) June 22, 2022
Marine Le Pen announced earlier this week she would be focusing entirely on her new role in the French parliament and praised her party’s major electoral gains saying her party would be a major voice in parliament on several issues, including fighting radical Islamism and blocking raising the French retirement age.
“It is true that we were pleasantly surprised by the mobilisation of our compatriots and by this wish that immigration, insecurity, the fight against Islamism do not disappear from the National Assembly,” Le Pen said.
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