“We want these elections to be held in June,” says leader of senators LREM

While the Scientific Council must submit Sunday March 28 to the Prime Minister its recommendations on whether or not to hold regional and departmental elections on June 13 and 20, the president of the LREM group in the Senate, François Patriat, would not want “to suggest that there is an opposition eager to vote and a majority which refuses to vote”. Guest of franceinfo, he assures that the elected representatives of the presidential majority want these elections “are held in June” but, at the same time, clarifies that“there will be no campaign” and “it can benefit the National Rally”.

franceinfo: Is it important to keep the elections in June?

François Patriat: I would not like to suggest that there would be on one side an opposition eager to vote and on the other side a presidential majority which refuses to vote. No, we want these elections to be held in June.

I hope that the Scientific Council’s report will not be half-goat-half-cabbage, but that it will say that we may or may not be able to organize these elections according to this or that data.

Francois Patriat

to franceinfo

I think we’re going to have three difficult weeks. We can really decide at the end of April. But the majority position is to say ‘we stick to what the law says’.

Will it be necessary to follow the advice of the Scientific Council, whatever it may be?

The advice of the Scientific Council should be taken into account. If the peak has really passed and 30 million people are vaccinated by the end of June, we can vote. There is still a downside, it is that voting under these conditions, it is to make a formidable bonus to the outgoing. I understand that the opposition insists on it … But what will the campaign be? Candidates will only be able to campaign online. We won’t be able to meet people. There will be no campaign, there will be no meeting. However, for a cantonal election, an election of proximity, it will be difficult.

Is there a risk of abstention?

Of course, we have seen mayors elected with 10% of the voters. We have seen elections in Portugal which were made with 20 or 30%, so will these elections make sense? It may even benefit the National Rally since the RN, him, does not need to campaign. People are voting on Madame Le Pen’s name. It can benefit the extremes, we must take all this into account in the decision that will be made.