Legislative elections 2024: in the first constituency of Hérault, the return of the “green phoenix”, Jean-Louis Roumégas

Jean-Louis Roumégas, on the evening of the first round of the legislative elections. Midi Libre – JEAN-MICHEL MART

The elected environmentalist, 62, a figure in the Montpellier and regional political landscape since 2001, returns to the benches of the National Assembly after his election on Sunday in the 1st constituency of Hérault. A hemicycle that he had already frequented, between 2012 and 2017 thanks to a rally candidacy supported by the PS and the PC, already.

A bit of a tease, some of his friends nicknamed him "the phoenix". A green phoenix, a funny political bird which, if not reborn from its ashes, is endowed with a solid capacity to bounce back. At 62, Jean-Louis Roumégas is making his return to the National Assembly in the ranks of the New Popular Front, seven years after leaving the Palais-Bourbon under the label of Europe -Ecology-the Greens.

A defeat then an isolation

In 2017, the outgoing deputy was unceremoniously cleared by these same voters in the first constituency: fourth only with 10.7% of the vote, well behind Patricia Mirallès, the future deputy of the camp presidential. This Sunday evening, at the Brasserie du Dôme, in front of his loyal supporters, the person concerned, particularly serene and relaxed despite a very intense campaign, expressed no feeling of revenge. During the week, he welcomed the decision of his competitor to withdraw as part of the republican front which was profitable for him, at the expense of the LR-RN candidate Josyan Oliva.

This "renaissance" of Jean-Louis Roumégas as part of a strategy of uniting the left comes after a sequence where, in the continuity of his defeat in the legislative elections, he found himself isolated there included within his own party. In 2020, during the municipal elections, his defeat during the internal primaries at EELV led him to slam the door then to present his own dissident list for a particularly weak result, 1.6% of the votes.

A very different political context

This Tuesday, the installation day of the new parliamentarians, this trained teacher, father of two children, is returning to an institution that he knows well and appreciates.&nbsp ;"I have pleasant memories of it, it’s one of the mandates that left the biggest impression on me. It’s an institution that functions very well with significant resources to do in-depth work. What struck me was that we have access to the best experts as soon as we work on a subject. It’is educational and enriching on a personal level".

This return, however, takes place in a very different political context. "At the time there were not many issues because François Hollande's majority was well established. This time parliament will take on much more importance. We will find the very essence of parliamentary work" explains the elected official who joined his colleagues from the future environmental group of the assembly on Monday in order to refine the strategy put in place. Starting with the nomination of a candidate for the post of Prime Minister from the New Popular Front. "This is the best thing that the President must do for the country if he wants to avoid the blocking of institutions, he must take note of the result& ;quot;. A first decisive step that the "phoenix" Roumégas approaches with regenerated determination.

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