Républicain Uniquement Du Nom
;-)
>> Anyway, this is a good move. “Union for a Popular Movement” was one of the worst names ever for a major political party. It used to be “Union for a Presidential Majority”, which was even worse as it would become inaccurate when the party lost the Presidency. They wanted to change it and.....keep the same initials I guess, stupid. <<
It probably sounds better in French. It sounds awkward in English and doesn't exactly roll off the tongue. Most French political parties have names that sound weird in English, like "Nature, Mining, Fishing, and Traditions Party", or whatever, etc.
Anyway, good PR move for them, France is really proud of being a Republic so the name probably polls well and is easy to remember.
>> And the term “Republican” is very important to the French. This will probably piss off the socialists. <<
Why would it tick off any of the official left-wing parties? I don't think any of them are in favor of reverting France back to a monarchy. They might be jealous of the name. Of course there's some freepers who think having a "Republic" magically means you have a nation that "Respects the rights of individuals and upholds the rule of law", so they might be offended that France uses the name and sucks up to Sharia law. Could be worse, some nation like Vietnam could have the Communists change their name to "Republican Party"