Mayors for France's major cities will be chosen on Sunday, in the last vote before next year's presidential elections. Excitement is particularly high in Paris and Nice, where the capital could shift to the right after 25 years under a Socialist-led coalition, if Rachida Dati overcomes her deficit in opinion polls to defeat Emmanuel Grégoire. On the Riviera, a hard-right ally of Marine Le Pen's National Rally (RN), Eric Ciotti, appears poised for victory.
In this second round of municipal elections, the biggest focus across the country is on the hard-left party France Unbowed (LFI). In many cities, it has formed alliances with other left-wing lists – mainly from the Socialist Party (PS) or Greens – to concentrate the anti-right vote. However, the key test in these elections, of significant importance ahead of 2027, is whether voters favor or shun these alliances, given growing criticisms aimed at LFI and its leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon for alleged antisemitism and pursuing a "sectional" i.e., Muslim vote.
Emblematic of this is Toulouse in the southwest, home to France's aeronautics industry, a large student population, and classic French banlieues. The city's center-right mayor Jean-Luc Moudenc came first in round one with 37% of the vote, but he was followed by two left-wingers: François Piquemal (27.5%) of LFI and the Socialist François Briançon (25%). These two have now merged their lists, giving them a theoretical lead over Moudenc. If they win, it will be the hard-left Piquemal who becomes Toulouse mayor. The test is to see whether the left/hard-left alliance acts as a clarion call to Toulouse voters or a turn-off.
Similar left-wing pacts have been made in 26 major towns and cities, including Nantes, Grenoble, Lyons, Limoges, Clermont-Ferrand, Brest, and Tours – earning the fury of right-wing politicians who call them "alliances of shame." The fact is that these alliances were forged just weeks after the Socialists led the rest of the mainstream left in condemning LFI, vowing to forego any future nationwide left coalition unless it changed its ways. This followed the murder of a far-right student in Lyon by suspected far-left militants, including the parliamentary assistant of an LFI MP, and then a speech by Mélenchon in which he allegedly made a nod-and-a-wink reference to the Jewish identity of late sex criminal Jeffrey Epstein.
For opponents of the left, the Socialists have supposedly ditched their principles at the first test – tying themselves once again to LFI out of fear of losing votes on their flank. In their defense, the left claims the alliances are needed to ward off victory by the far right, even though, in the vast majority of cities where pacts have been reached, their main opponent is not from RN but from the mainstream right Republicans (LR). Commentators of all shades see these developments as a sign of Mélenchon's growing confidence ahead of next year's presidential election, his aim being to become the main depository of left-wing votes ahead of a run-off against Marine Le Pen or RN president Jordan Bardella.
Not every city has seen an all-left pact. In Paris, the Socialist Emmanuel Grégoire refused an alliance with LFI candidate Sophia Chikirou, who remains in the race. Meanwhile, right-winger Rachida Dati has benefited from the withdrawal of candidates from the center and far-right, and in the polls is nudging at Grégoire's lead. In Marseille, the incumbent Socialist Benoît Payan has been boosted by the withdrawal of the LFI candidate, while his close challenger from RN, Franck Allisio, is hindered by an LR candidate leaching right-wing votes. RN is, as ever, limited by its enemies' willingness to unite against it, as in Marseille and neighboring Toulon. The hard right's best hopes of a breakthrough are in Nice, where Eric Ciotti, of the RN-allied UDR party, looks set for a win against the incumbent Christian Estrosi. For centrists, the best news has been the strong first-round performance of former prime minister Edouard Philippe, who is likely to win in Le Havre – purportedly giving a big boost to his presidential ambitions next year.
Source: www.bbc.com