The second round of municipal elections in France has left this Sunday a very fragmented political map: the left has won in Paris and Marseille, two of the country's main urban centers, while the far-right has managed to take Nice and the ecologists have triumphed in Lyon, Tours and Grenoble.
Paris
In the capital, the socialist Emmanuel Grégoire, backed by a coalition of left-wing forces, has achieved 50.52% of the votes and will succeed the French-Gaditan Anne Hidalgo as Mayor. With this result, he has surpassed the conservative former minister Rachida Dati and the candidate of La France Insoumise, Sophia Chikirou, who have obtained 41.52% and 7.96% of the votes, respectively.
“Paris has decided to remain faithful to its history,” Grégoire proclaimed upon the first projections becoming known, which already placed him around 50% support, later confirmed by the official count.
Le Havre
Another of the prominent names of the night has been former prime minister Édouard Philippe, who has revalidated the Mayoralty of Le Havre with 47.71% of the votes. He has finished ahead of Jean-Paul Lecoq, of the French Communist Party (PCF), who has garnered 41.17%, and the far-right candidate Franck Keller, with 11.12%.
“The trust of the people of Le Havre honors me,” Philippe stated in his first appearance after the closing of the polls. Polls and political predictions point to him as one of the possible aspirants to the Élysée in the presidential elections scheduled for 2027.
Marseille
In Marseille, Benoît Payan, at the head of a left-wing coalition without the participation of La France Insoumise, has achieved a resounding 54.34% of the votes. He has thus defeated the candidate of the National Rally, Franck Allisio, and the representative of The Republicans, Martine Vassal, who have obtained 40.30% and 5.36% of the votes, respectively.
Nice
In Nice, the alliance between Union of Democrats for the Republic and National Rally headed by Éric Ciotti, supported by the far-right Marine Le Pen, has positioned itself as the leading force with 48.54% of the votes. This result has relegated the outgoing mayor and Ciotti's former mentor, Christian Estrosi, to 37.20%, while the left-wing candidate Juliette Chesnel-Le Roux has remained at 14.26%.
“Tonight, National Rally is winning dozens of municipalities, after the second round of municipal elections,” Le Pen celebrated in a message disseminated on her social networks, where she has described these results as an “immense victory” and the “confirmation of the local implementation strategy” of her party.
The greens impose themselves in Lyon, Tours and Grenoble
In the environmental field, the mayor of Lyon, Grégory Doucet, has managed to renew his mandate with a tight 50.67% of the votes. He has surpassed by a narrow margin the independent Jean-Michel Aulas, backed by the center-right, who has obtained 49.33%.
After the data became known, Aulas has expressed his “reservations” about the result in statements collected by ‘Le Parisien’, in which he has denounced “irregularities that occurred throughout the day”, without detailing specific cases. “Given the numerous irregularities observed in the polling stations, we have filed an appeal”, he has indicated to his followers, insisting that “what is being challenged is not the absolute result”, but these alleged anomalies.
In Tours, ecologist councilor Emmanuel Denis has also been re-elected, with 47.20% of the ballots, ahead of conservative candidate Christophe Bouchet, who has reached 43.86%.
For her part, in Grenoble, the green candidate Laurence Ruffin has defeated right-wing candidate Alain Carignon by obtaining 56.59% of the votes, compared to 43.41% for her opponent.
Faure denounces “irreconcilable left-wing factions”
The leader of the French Socialist Party, Olivier Faure, has launched a veiled criticism of La France Insoumise (LFI) after the defeat of several socialist mayors who had sealed alliances with this formation, such as in Brest and Clermont-Ferrand. “Scandalous provocation, indiscriminate incitement to conflict, and antisemitic outbursts lead nowhere,” he assured in his first reaction to the results.
Faure has lamented that there are “irreconcilable left-wing factions” and has called to rebuild the unity of the progressive bloc “around clear principles”, alongside “those who clearly understand the problems and refuse to blindly follow the sound and the fury”.
In contrast, the national coordinator of LFI, Manuel Bompard, has highlighted the “progress” and the “resounding success” of his candidates, which, in his opinion, is “confirmed, amplified and strengthened” one year before the presidential elections. “This mobilization is a true demonstration of decisive political strength ahead of the next presidential elections,” he emphasized.
According to Bompard, in the elections for the head of State “the new France can sweep away (President Emmanuel) Macron and his disastrous policies”, he has predicted.
In the National Grouping, the leadership has highlighted the “incredible harvest” obtained in these municipal elections. “We have obtained an incredible harvest. We have multiplied by 13 the number of elected municipal officials,” highlighted the party's vice-president, Sébastien Chenu, in statements to TF1.
In the centrist and conservative space, the most favorable results have come where they have run on joint lists. “In the 2027 presidential elections, we need a single candidate,” Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin has defended. “In Tourcoing, we were united and we won. We need a candidate from the right and the center, and perhaps even from the republican left that rejects La France Insoumise. In Tourcoing, they voted for us,” he argued, advocating for the unity formula.