Manuel Valls' 2019 Barcelona town hall was a failure. The presidential candidate failed to qualify this Sunday for the second round in the legislative election for the fifth constituency of French expatriates (Spain, Portugal, Andorra, and Monaco).
He is third behind Renaud (Nupes), and Stephane Vojetta, LREM dissident.
The former Prime Minister of Francois Netherlandse, in a series tweets, admitted defeat. He wrote that "It is up for me lucidly and to draw the consequences" while calling to "block Nupes' candidate. Manuel Valls' account was deleted shortly before 11:59 p.m. on Sunday night, rendering his tweets unaccessible. Just before the account was deleted, a furtive "Goodbye Twitter!" message had been sent to it.
The May 5th announcement of the investiture by the former Prime Minister was a bombshell in this constituency, particularly among Spanish-speaking French citizens. Stephane Vojetta (outgoing deputy) wore the colors of La Republique en Marche. He had promised, if elected to office, to continue "a loyal supporter" of Emmanuel Macron.
Manuel Valls reacted to this topic by saying, "If dissent or division have sown chaos, I cannot ignore the fact that my candidacy failed to convince".
Stephane Vojetta indicated on his Twitter account that he was qualified for the second round. He called upon the presidential majority "to unite behind (his] candidacy".
Manuel Valls's defeat is a setback for the socialist party heavyweight who left France four years ago to attempt in vain to win the 2019 town hall elections in Barcelona. After his defeat in the 2017 socialist primaries in France, which saw him lose the French presidential election, he was convinced he could "win" these municipal elections. He came in fourth place with 13% of the vote, behind Ada Colau, the incumbent left-wing mayor, and the Catalan independence candidate.
Manuel Valls was in a romantic relationship with Susana Galardo, a wealthy heiress from a Catalan pharmaceutical firm. He had left the Barcelona city council to return to France in 2021 as a columnist for RMC and BFMTV.
The Nupes made fun of this new failure by the former Prime Minister. "It's what the Nupes call a good Sunday night to begin the final week of the campaign for France!" Manon Aubry (MEP for France Insoumise) tweeted the following:
Jean-Luc Melenchon (leader of Nupes) tweeted, "Thanks to the French abroad that put us in the lead Spain and Portugal." The photo was accompanied by a poignant photo of Jean-Luc Melenchon and other LFI parliamentarians waving "Good riddance!" signs.
Adrien Quatennens also shares this publication, number 2 in Jean-Luc Melenchon’s party.
Jean-Luc Melenchon asked Emmanuel Macron to be reappointed to Matignon in case of a win for the left in the legislative election. Emmanuel Macron stated in an interview on Friday with the regional press that no political party can impose a name upon the president, who "chooses" the prime minister by looking at the Parliament.
