After his appointment to the government of Rachid Dati, he is “no longer a member of the Republicans,” assures Eric Ciotti.

The divorce has been registered. Eric Ciotti reiterated on Thursday that Culture Minister Rachida Dati is no longer a member of the Republicans, explaining that she is no longer a member and therefore there is no need to expel her. “She is no longer a member of the Republicans, there is no ambiguity here,” the party president assured on TF1.

The appointment of Rachida Dati to the Ministry of Culture last month caused an earthquake among Republicans. Eric Ciotti initially announced his expulsion from LR, but sanctions were not on the party’s political office agenda at the start of the week. “There is no need for exclusion (…). To become a member of a political party, you must join it. In 2024 it is no longer a member of the EU, so there is no need for any special procedure,” the Alpes-Maritimes MP explained on Thursday.

“We cannot be in the government, and therefore in the majority, and in the opposition party,” he added. “She will no longer be a member unless she decides to leave this government. Political life is about common sense and logic. (…) We cannot be outside and inside,” said the parliamentarian, who said he “regrets and regrets” the choice of the Minister of Culture.

When asked by Le Parisien after her appointment, Rachida Dati said she had tendered her “resignation from the National Council of the Republicans, which is normal, not from the Republicans.” “I may be expelled from the party; “I cannot be excluded from my values,” which remain “republican,” the minister defended, assuring that she “never changed (her) convictions.”

LR will not miss the “municipal battle” of Paris

Eric Ciotti also reiterated that his party should be present in the Paris municipal elections in 2026, a seat coveted by Rachida Dati, still mayor of the 7th arrondissement. “Naturally, the Republicans will be present in the municipal battle to defeat Anna Hidalgo,” he assured. “We will see whether Madame Dati will be a candidate, under what label, whether she will still remain in the government. There’s still a lot of time,” the deputy said.

He also returned to the controversy sparked by the former justice minister’s Monday night appearance on the popular Twitch rap show “DVM Show.” The plot was heavily criticized on social media, as well as from the far right, including RN boss Jordan Bardella, who accused the show of being a “den of anti-Semites”, referring to rapper Freeze Corleone, who is being investigated. “apology for terrorism”.

“I wouldn’t do that,” added Eric Ciotti, also confirming that “there are connections in this group with the rapper Freeze Corleone, whose concerts were banned” in Lyon and Lille. “He filed a complaint against me” for libel, the deputy recalled. In fact, in one of these songs, he draws a parallel between the artist and the terrorist attack in Nice in 2016, comments that, in his opinion, are “unambiguous and undignified,” which the rapper for his part denies. “I confirm more than ever my outrage at this use of the terrorist attack in Nice,” insisted the President of the Republic of Lithuania.