Éric Ciotti has found a way to save his job: lock everyone out.

The leader of Les Républicains — France’s historical home for conservatives — closed his party’s headquarters on Wednesday morning, asking employees to head home just as his opponents sought an emergency meeting to remove him from position.

Ciotti said he took his decision for security purposes, “as a result of threats and disorderly conduct.” However, it comes comes a day after he announced his plans to ally with the far right National Rally (RN) in the upcoming snap elections — a plan he said was designed to ensure his outgoing MPs’ reelection and beat Macron and a nascent coalition on the left.

The move was met with horror by top officials within the party, including its last presidential candidate, Valérie Pécresse, and the president of the Senate, Gérard Larcher. Several party officials immediately called for Ciotti to resign.

“Following Eric Ciotti’s announcement of an agreement with the RN, I have decided to convene an exceptional Political Bureau meeting,” party vice president Annie Genevard posted on X.

Ciotti quickly countered, telling daily Le Figaro on Wednesday that a vice president was not allowed to call such a meeting under the party’s statutes and regulations — and deciding to close the headquarters.

Macron’s shock decision to call early elections after his party’s collapse in the European election has left parties on both ends of the political spectrum scrambling to build alliances with hopes of winning the vote in a few weeks. While the left is close to reaching an agreement, talks between right wing forces have proved more complicated.

Though RN president Jordan Bardella said his party had agreed with Les Républicains to unite in dozens of electoral districts, very few outgoing conservative MPs have backed the idea of an alliance with the far right.

Politico

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