“Politics is never easy. But there, it was very hard”, says Brigitte Bourguignon, former LREM deputy and ephemeral Minister of Health. Three months after the June legislative elections, the former deputies of the beaten majority are trying to raise their heads. The presidential coalition Together! paid dearly for the renewal of the National Assembly, with 42% of outgoing deputies having to empty their offices at the Palais Bourbon.
“I was angry. I cried a lot the night of my defeat, like a little madeleine. My children came to support me.”
Brigitte Bourguignon, former MP and Minister of Healthat franceinfo
Overnight, a hundred Macronist deputies were forced to change their lives. “You find yourself unemployed. The phone no longer rings, we turn our backs on you. This loneliness that falls on you, it’s a little hard”testifies Philippe Huppé, former deputy of Hérault. “We do not expect this brutality. Your agenda, which was full, suddenly empties, you have to pack your boxes, lay off your team, all the projects you were carrying are abandoned”continues Laurianne Rossi, former LREM deputy for Hauts-de-Seine.
“What made me especially funny was getting up the next morning and finding myself without a mandate, when I had been elected for twenty-seven yearsdetails Patrick Mignola, the former leader of the MoDem deputies. Every morning before, I had a subject or a concern to settle. It’s weird! We just become husband and father again.”
“With my team, we had crazy days. It’s hard to tear yourself away from this collective life”, continues Brigitte Bourguignon, who lost by around fifty votes. For the former minister, there is also the “Kiss Cool double effect”with the end of his ministerial functions because of his defeat in the legislative elections, an unwritten rule but applied by all governments since Nicolas Sarkozy. “It’s a double jeopardyblows the former MP for Pas-de-Calais. We wonder if ministers will still go to the elections when we see how we are rewarded. If I’m minister again, I’ll think twice.”
Other former beaten heavyweights try to be more detached and take refuge behind humor to refuse to say more. “RenaissanceBeyoncé’s latest album, is a subject, but I feel that alone [le magazine] rock & folk might be interested”, texts Christophe Castaner in reference to the change of name of La République en Marche.
“Alas, my political news has been very greatly reduced for a few weeks, my news has little interest.”
Christophe Castaner, former president of the LREM group at the Assemblyat franceinfo
For the majority of parliamentarians beaten, the summer was difficult. Before leaving to take a step back by the sea with the family, there are all the administrative hassles to settle. “June 21st [deux jours après le deuxième tour], we no longer have the right to use the accounts of the Assembly. It is necessary to stop the rental of its permanence, to terminate all contracts, to empty the premises. You have to lay off your employees… In short, it’s like a business manager who sinks his box”, lists Christophe Jerretie, former MoDem MP for Corrèze. Some still have a little work to do before they can move on. “I take a little time to fold everything up and close the accounts, because I took a vacation”recognizes Philippe Huppé.
Then, with the start of the school year, the deputies quickly ask themselves the question of their new life. On August 29, Emmanuel Macron also received the defeated at the Elysee Palace for a “cuddle therapy” session. “There will still be mornings of combat and evenings of conquest. And you will be part of it”, reassured the Head of State in front of the 150 beaten who had made the trip. The unfortunates of June 19 appreciated the words of the president. “He said he wouldn’t leave anyone behind, I thought that was good”says Philippe Huppé.
“We really expected a word of recognition and gratitude, he had the right words”confirms Laurianne Rossi. “Well, at the time, it’s weird. We celebrated All Saints’ Day early, but that’s also politics”slips Patrick Mignola in reference to the Catholic holiday which precedes the commemoration of the deceased by one day.
“But hey, we’re not the most unhappy either.”
Patrick Mignola, former MoDem MP for Savoieat franceinfo
Not everyone was so sensitive to the reunion. “There are people for whom it was very moving, it was not my case. That’s life, I don’t dwell on the past”puts former LREM deputy for Eure Bruno Questel into perspective. “Many people had not passed the milestone of defeat. This also comes from the weak political experience of the parliamentarians that Macron had recruited, they had not prepared to losebelieves for his part Christophe Jerretie. But after a while, you have to turn the page.”
To move on, some MPs must first rebuild themselves professionally. “I am currently looking for work. I have some leads, especially in crafts and arts and crafts”, says Philippe Huppé. The president of the departmental federation of the Radical Party denounces in particular the lack of support for the deputies. “There is a real problem with the end of mandates”he observes.
“Couldn’t we have an equivalence, set up assistance to go to another life at the end of the mandate?”
Philippe Huppé, former MPat franceinfo
Christophe Jerretie has also been unemployed for three months. “The most complicated thing when you come from the private sector like me is to bounce back. I had sold my business when I became a deputy”explains the former elected MoDem. “I hesitate between joining a group that interests me, taking over an existing company or becoming a lawyer. I am currently looking at my territory, but there are not many offers”he worries.
Laurianne Rossi is currently on unpaid leave and has not received any salary since the end of June. But she is in talks to return to her old company. “I was on suspension of contract within SNCF Réseaux, but I should normally resume a professional activity in October”she confirms. “It’s like maternity leave: I was replaced during my mandate, but the employer’s obligation is to reinstate me.”
“We are not expected at all at the exit. Employers are very afraid to hire a former deputy, because it automatically labels their company.”
Laurianne Rossi, former LREM deputy for Hauts-de-Seineat franceinfo
Some parliamentarians defeated in the last legislative elections have, on the other hand, already found a job. And they are almost starting to enjoy their new life. Cautious, Bruno Questel had decided to join the Paris bar before the elections. A wise choice. “I was able to return to my profession immediately by joining a public law firm”reports the former elected official of Eure.
Former civil servants, like Catherine Daufès-Roux, have fewer questions to ask. The former LREM deputy from Gard, who only sat for a single year at the Palais Bourbon to replace a resigning colleague, had the chance to return to her post as head of establishment in college. Former Minister Brigitte Bourguignon was also quick to bounce back, being appointed to the General Inspectorate of Social Affairs. “It’s a totally different life. You are no longer surrounded as much, with collaborators who manage your daily agenda. But it’s just as exciting”she says.
In parallel with these new professional lives, most former MPs have another point in common: the desire not to hang up. Many of them want to continue to do politics. At different levels. If some wanted to remain members of the national authorities of their party, like Patrick Mignola, vice-president of the MoDem, others wanted to keep their mandates as local elected officials, like Laurianne Rossi or Brigitte Bourguignon. Finally, there are those who do not close the door to a possible candidacy in 2027. “It’s a nice function, and I think I could do more and better”, slips Philippe Huppé. His colleague Christophe Jerretie feels he has done the trick and is aiming for other positions.
“If I come back, it’s for something new, as a minister, for example.”
Christophe Jerretie, former MoDem MPat franceinfo
An electoral defeat can however sign the end of a political career. For Danièle Hérin, the hour of retirement has come. But the former LREM MP for Aude says she wants to continue to be involved in local politics. This college professor can’t resolve “to see all the districts of Aude in the hands of the RN”.
Former LREM deputy for Rhône Yves Blein “wouldn’t have spat on a third term”but the polls decided otherwise. “I am 68 years old and I had set myself the goal of stopping when I turned 70. We must let democratic life breathe and bring up a new generation”, he judges. Patrick Mignola does not draw a line under 2027, but shares the wish to see young people get involved in politics. “I am 51 years old and I also want to pass on to other generations now.”