Nadine Morano, a close ally of former president Nicolas Sarkozy, was dropped from the list of candidates for the upcoming regional elections by The Republicans on Wednesday over her comments that France was a “...country...of White race”.
Sarkozy, who once counted the 51-year-old former minister as one of his closest allies in his government, took a few days to react to her comments.
But eventually he called on her to apologise, saying "I will not accept any slip-ups" ahead of December's regional polls.
Morano, who made these comments in a television interview in September, was widely condemned from all points of the political spectrum, and the head of The Republicans' list of candidates for eastern France, Philippe Richert, said her comments had had a “devastating effect” on his campaign.
But the incident was the just the latest in a string of controversial moments for The Republicans, whose members often sound as though they are trying to mimic the surging far-right National Front (FN), led by Marine Le Pen.
Sarkozy had given Morano a last chance to express regret for her comments in a letter during a meeting with the party committee on Tuesday.
However, she remained absent for the meeting, following which her name was struck off the list. Morano will be replaced by Valerie Rosso-Debord.
