Municipal in Saint-Denis: the union between Communists and Insoumis shatters

It is an improbable political upheaval, and which could weigh heavily on the outcome of the municipal elections in Saint-Denis. Against all expectations, there will be no union list between the outgoing PCF mayor Laurent Russier and his former deputy Bally Bagayoko, supported by La France Insoumise.

“We are more determined than ever but we know it will be harder,” slips the first, who finally submitted his own list in the Bobigny prefecture on Tuesday afternoon.

Yet an agreement had been found the day before

The agreement tied on Monday between the outgoing PCF mayor Laurent Russier and his former deputy (La France Insoumise) Bally Bagayoko did not seem to have withstood the difficult negotiations around the composition of a merger list.

The two camps had however announced their rapprochement, facing the socialist opponent Mathieu Hanotin, who came first in the first round, with more than 35% of the vote. Things seemed to be done: the outgoing mayor, who won 24% of the vote on March 15, was to take the head of the list, on which Bally Bagayoko (18% of the votes) was to appear in third position. The sharing of eligible places seemed established, the points of divergence on the programs smoothed out.

But the rest of this delicate patchwork of candidates and various political sensibilities remained to be knitted. And the negotiations came up against a few obstacles. Laurent Russier notably opposed the candidacy in an eligible position of Madjid Messaoudène, elected by the outgoing majority.

He is accused of having taken “divisive” positions

“From our first interview with Bally, I indicated that it was a problem for me, whereas we had accepted many other proposals,” explains Laurent Russier. He accuses the elected official in question of having “often taken divisive positions, alone, on the subjects of the place of religions, secularism, gender equality, police-population relations”. “Which sometimes put me in difficulty, by placing me face to face with a fait accompli. “

However, to believe Laurent Russier, the name of Madjid Messaoudène has never disappeared from the successive lists proposed by the camp of Bally Bagayoko. “It has become a blocking subject. As the head of the list, I still have a say in the people I want to work with. “

No list of rebels in the second round?

The outgoing mayor therefore deposited his own list Tuesday in the prefecture, “around 5 pm”. In a final twist, he then received a call from Madjid Messaoudène, proposing to withdraw his candidacy, a few minutes before the expiry of the legal deadline for the deposit of the lists. “We sent a team back to the prefecture, but it was too late,” concludes Laurent Russier.

Bally Bagayoko, who was not reachable this Tuesday evening, would not have filed a competing list.