Nicolas Sarkozy’s UMP set to officially change name to Les Républicains

Militants of Nicolas Sarkozy’s conservative UMP will officially change their party’s name to “Les Républicains” – the Republicans – on Saturday.

With the name change, the former president of France hopes to erase the UMP's disastrous recent history: Sarkozy's defeat in the 2012 presidential election; the financial ruin of the party, which is nearly €70 million in debt; a vicious power struggle between Jean- François Copé and François Fillon for leadership of the party; and Copé's resignation in the middle of the "Bygmalion" scandal over the illegal financing of the failed 2012 campaign.

"At first glance," historian Jean-Noel Jeanneney wrote in Le Monde, "one is tempted to see in this strange [name- changing] project a new sign of the fascination that Nicolas Sarkozy has always shown for the United States."

Sarkozy doubtless feels closer to US Republicans than Democrats, but the move was more widely interpreted as what Jeanneney called “an unworthy capture of heritage”.

United by Republic

The Republic, with a capital “R”, is one of the few values upon which most French people agree. Last November Sarkozy used the word “republic” 109 times in one speech.

In a recent letter to UMP militants, Sarkozy said he was "returning to the sources of the Republic". Enraged left-wing voters suspected he was fobbing off his version of the Republic as the Republic.

Radio editorialist Thomas Legrand accused Sarkozy of "transforming political life into a theological battle" and "cheapening the Republic".

Four left-wing parties and 143 individuals filed a lawsuit to prevent the UMP from appropriating a name they said belonged to all French. A high tribunal ruled on May 26th that the party could call itself “the republicans” until a more extensive judgment is concluded

Sarkozy was jubilant at a rally Tuesday night in Le Havre. He accused president François Hollande of “sending his henchmen” to file the lawsuit. Mocking the debate that pitted him against Hollande three years ago, he repeatedly referred to Hollande as “moi-président” and said Hollande “wanted to choose the name of our party himself! Tough luck!”

Sarkozy also sarcastically thanked Hollande for the “free publicity”, which, he claimed, achieved rapid brand recognition.

Sarkozy’s gloating was short-lived. The former president has a chronic problem with the lavish expenditure of others people’s money, especially his party’s. Repeated embarrassments have taught him nothing.

Sarkozy was found to have rented a private jet at a cost of at least €3,200 – at party expense – to transport him the 177km from Paris to the rally in Le Havre. (The two-hour journey by car or rail was deemed too tiring.) A luxury car was nonetheless dispatched – again, at party expense – from Paris all the way to Le Havre to carry Sarkozy from the tarmac to the auditorium and back.

The expenditure might have been less shocking in other circumstances. But the May 30th name-changing convention has been billed as a "low-cost congress". No transport will be provided for militants, and party treasurer Daniel Fasquelle asked them to bring their own sandwiches.

It’s quite a comedown from the €7 million extravaganza in 2004, when Sarkozy first took control of the UMP. Saturday’s congress is supposed to cost “only” €550,000. In 2013, supporters paid €11 million from their own pockets in a “Sarkothon” to alleviate Sarkozy’s campaign debt.

Though a hard core of UMP militants still favour Sarkozy over his rival, former prime minister Alain Juppé, France is weary of him. An Odoxa poll published on May 23rd showed for the first time that Juppé would defeat Sarkozy by 55 to 45 per cent in the 2016 conservative primary.

Allies on trial

In other bad news for Sarkozy, five close allies, including his current cabinet director, have been slated for trial on charges of misuse of public funds, concealment and complicity. As interior minister under Sarkozy, Claude Guéant received €119,000 in cash, which was supposed to have been used for police investigations.

On May 7th, the Paris appeals court rejected Sarkozy’s move to have wiretaps of his and his lawyer’s telephones discounted as evidence in a case involving his alleged attempt to corrupt a supreme court judge.

Sarkozy could go on trial before the 2017 presidential election.