Independent Republican and Liberal Pole
The Independent Republican and Liberal Pole was a liberal-centrist political party in France.
The PRIL was founded in 1998 by members of Liberal Democracy who refused to leave the Union for French Democracy, as proposed by Alain Madelin. They included François Léotard, Gilles de Robien, Gérard Longuet, Jean-Pierre Fourcade, Alain Lamassoure, Renaud Donnedieu de Vabres, François Sauvadet, Bernard Lehideux and Rudy Salles.
PRIL merged with Democratic Force and the so-called "Direct Adherents" to the New UDF, structured as a single party.
Some of them joined the Union for a Popular Movement in 2002, while others, including Gilles de Robien, represented the most pro-UMP and pro-Sarkozy faction within UDF, being also strong opponents of François Bayrou.
