Macron's party officially changes name to Renaissance
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Macron is the "Honorary President" of his new Renaissance party, while the party's Secretary-General is Stéphane Séjourné, the president of the pro-EU Renew group in the European Parliament.
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Macron's party officialy changes name to Renaissance
On the evening of the first round of the presidential election, French President Emmanuel Macron decided to change the name of his party to Renaissance, according to french media.
On September 16 and 17, Macron called on his supporters to get down to practical work and "refound" La République en Marche (LRM).
It is unclear how many of his supporters voted, but the President thanked "all those who, for six years and until this evening, committed themselves to work alongside me to transcend their differences, to come together in a great political movement."
After two days of voting by members on the new statutes and the new leadership, the leading political party will officially be renamed Renaissance on Sunday evening.
The results will be unveiled at a founding party congress, where Renaissance's leader, Stéphane Séjourné, will deliver a speech.
Ce logo, c'est celui de tous les progressistes.
— Stéphane Séjourné (@steph_sejourne) September 17, 2022
C'est le vôtre ! pic.twitter.com/cgVTOhrMvM
Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne wants a party that is “open, transgressive, innovative."
Stanislas Guerini, the outgoing Secretary-General, defines Renaissance as “the party that defends freedoms, all freedoms."
Stéphane Séjourné speaks of “radical reformism” in what may sound like an oxymoron.
The four pillars are ecology, where the Secretary-General said, "We are the only green party in government," work, with Elisabeth Borne saying, "We are proud to make it a cardinal value," equal opportunities, and the fight against discrimination and finally sovereignty “which goes through Europe," added the Prime Minister.
However, within a short time span, the President had to lower his ambitions.
The desire to found a single unifying party has been reduced to a merger between LRM and only two small satellite parties: the center-left Territoires de Progrès led by Labor Minister Olivier Dussopt and center-right Agir led by Franck Riester, the minister of relations with Parliament.
La République en Marche's two allies, François Bayrou's centrist MoDem and Edouard Philippe's center-right Horizons, are reluctant to lose their autonomy.
En Commun, the majority's environmentalists branch led by the former environment minister Barbara Pompili and former MP Hugues Renson, does not intend to merge either.
Read more: Thousands of French protestors demand withdrawal from NATO and EU
Renaissance is a political project put together by Séjourné, in conjunction with the Elysée, and is intended to prepare the best process for designating a successor to Emmanuel Macron in 2027, when he reaches the end of his second term.
Some important political figures who have long been disinterested in LRM have decided to step in.
While Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin will be responsible for training party members, Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire will be in charge of ideas.
