Bernard Cazeneuve and Xavier Bertrand invited to the Élysée

Bernard Cazeneuve will be received at the Élysée on the morning of Monday, September 2. He made it clear that he was not the applicant, but that he was acting “by duty” and to avoid additional difficulties for the country. Xavier Bertrand, the LR president of the Hauts-de-France region, is expected in the afternoon. Emmanuel Macron will also sound out the opinions of his two predecessors, François Hollande and Nicolas Sarkozy.

For the Macronist camp, the Cazeneuve scenario is preferred. Yaël Braun-Pivet judges it in particular “able to bring people together beyond their own camp”. While Bernard Cazeneuve is opposed to any alliance with La France Insoumise, the leaders of the New Popular Front have declared that they will oppose the former Prime Minister. As for the main person concerned, it remains to be seen whether he wants to govern, or how he will manage the thorny issue of pension reform.