Since the call for a “major civic march against anti-Semitism” launched by Gérard Larcher and Yaël Braun-Pivet, the presence of far-right parties in the procession has sparked controversy. With his Reconquest party, Éric Zemmour will be present.
The left, in particular, is still angry against the participation of the far right in the “great civic march against anti-Semitism” planned for Sunday November 12. It’s not just the presence of Marine Le Pen that is disturbing, Éric Zemmour will also be there. Along with his main lieutenants, they were among the first to respond. While Reconquest only has one parliamentarian in the Senate, they are enthusiastic about showing themselves to other political forces.
Defense of the Jews: support and trial
In recent weeks, Éric Zemmour has increased his speeches in favor of Israel, “this is the position he has always defended” according to those around him. Remember that he is still being questioned for his comments about Marshal Pétain. His case will soon return to court, becauseThe Court of Cassation annulled his acquittal and ordered a new trial of the politician for “contestation of crime against humanity”. He argued in 2019 that Marshal Pétain had “Safe” French Jews during the Second World War.
Faithful to his speech on the “war of civilizations”, the leader of Reconquest has just statedin a forum at Figarothat “it is the Judeo-Christian civilization which is attacked by the Arab-Muslim world”. Last week he made a three-day trip to Israel. He is one of the French politicians who spent the most time there. His entourage assures that he received a good welcome: “Do you know another French politician capable of bringing together 1,000 people in a room over there?”launches one of his supporters, who recalls that in the last presidential election, Éric Zemmour had collected more than 50% of the votes among French people living in Israel.
So is the leader of Reconquest trying to garner community votes? The question annoys a party executive: “No, we are not trying to flirt with this population. Besides, Zemmour never talks about his religious beliefs”he said.
Call for a RIP on immigration
The party has also tried to make itself heard on the “immigration” bill in recent days. Marion Maréchal proposes an alliance of all right-wing parties to collect signatures and launch a shared initiative referendum (RIP) on immigration. But only Nicolas Dupont-Aignan is up for it. For others it’s nothing! The National Rally accuses Reconquête of wanting to collect data from the French, while the Republicans emphasize that such a referendum is not possible on the subject of immigration: “It’s a joke and it happens a little after the battle”, comments someone close to Eric Ciotti. A Reconquest framework deciphers: “We suspected that LR and the RN were not going to follow us”then he admits, “this allows us to set a small beacon” in the current debate.
At the same time, its European candidate Marion Maréchal is struggling to make herself heard. She campaigns in the regions of France, was recently in Armenia, but never invites the national media. “We are only in the pre-campaign”justifies a member of his team, who promises an increase in power from February.