Allies of former French president Nicolas Sarkozy lined up on Wednesday to call for his return to head an opposition UMP party beset by crisis, setting the stage for a comeback that could propel him to a re-election bid in 2017, reports Reuters.
Sarkozy, who lost power to Socialist President Francois Hollande in 2012, has since avoided direct involvement in politics but is widely expected to seek re-election in 2017 and has been commenting with increasing frequency on European current affairs.
With his former UMP party in crisis, hit by a campaign funding scandal that forced its chief to step down and set off a leadership contest, friends of the former president urged him to take its reins and run for president.
"We need a leader, a project and a direction," European deputy Brice Hortefeux, a close ally of Sarkozy and formerly his interior minister, told Le Monde in an interview. "I want him to be candidate to run the UMP in the autumn."
A trio of former prime ministers are set to lead the party temporarily until a congress in October is held and elects a new leader, potentially leaving it directionless for months.
Read more of this report from Reuters.