Overview
- Gabriel Attal relaunched the call for a “primaire des démocrates” to produce one centre-right candidate and said he is convinced the vote will take place to avoid elimination in the first round.
- Aurore Bergé and several centre and centre-right figures publicly backed a primary limited to the right and centre and pressed for modalities to be agreed before the end of the year.
- Édouard Philippe reiterated on Sunday that he will not submit to a primary, arguing it would create division and confusion, making his acceptance the decisive barrier to any formal contest.
- Key disputes persist over the perimeter and rules, with some actors excluding Raphaël Glucksmann and others proposing alternatives such as very large polls of tens of thousands of voters if parties cannot agree.
- If the bloc central fails to unify quickly it risks a first-round elimination and a Mélenchon–Le Pen runoff, which is why rivals are mounting pressure on Philippe and national polling results are expected to shape next steps.