Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo declared victory in her re-election bid as municipal elections postponed by the coronavirus crisis have seen a breakthrough by greens across the country.
Sunday’s vote also appears as a setback for French President Emmanuel Macron’s young centrist party, which was running municipal candidates for the first time and still lacks local roots in France.
Hidalgo, a socialist, greatly outperformed conservative candidate Rachida Dati, according to estimates based on partial results. She was first elected as Mayor of Paris in 2014. Her re-election will allow her to oversee the 2024 Summer Olympics.
Hidalgo is backed by the Europe Ecology-The Greens party, which gained strong influence across the country.
Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo gesturing after her victorious second round of the municipal elections on Sunday.
(AP Photo / Christophe Ena)
Green candidates won in major cities in France, such as Marseille, Lyon, Strasbourg, and Bordeaux, often taking the lead in their alliance with the weakened Socialist Party.
The second round of the municipal elections has had a record low turnout amid persistent concerns about the pandemic.
Only 40 percent of voters cast their ballots, as people were required to wear masks at polling stations, maintain social distance while in the lines, and bring their own pens to sign the voting records.
Poll organizers wore masks and gloves to protect themselves, and in some places they were separated from voters by clear plastic shields. Voting by mail is not allowed in France.
Macron expressed “concern” about the low turnout, “which is not very good news,” according to his office.
Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo received a bouquet of flowers after her victorious second round of the municipal elections on Sunday.
(AP Photo / Christophe Ena)
Interior Minister Christophe Castaner, in charge of organizing the elections, said that “everywhere in France, health measures … could be respected. That is a satisfaction.”
Sunday’s vote was intended to elect mayors and city councilors in some 5,000 towns and cities.
The electoral process was suspended after the first round of municipal elections nationwide on March 15, which produced decisive results in 30,000 mostly small communes. Macron’s critics say he shouldn’t have allowed the first round to take place, as it took place just as infections exploded in Europe and just two days before France introduced blocking measures at the national level.
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The spread of the coronavirus has slowed significantly in France in recent weeks and almost all restrictions on business and social activity have been gradually lifted over the past month. France has reported nearly 200,000 confirmed cases and 29,781 deaths in the pandemic, but experts believe that all reported numbers are underestimated due to limited evidence and minor cases lost.
The elections, while seemingly focused on local concerns, are also considered a key political indicator ahead of the 2022 French presidential election.
Macron had said he was not considering the elections as a vote for or against the government.
However, a reorganization of the government is expected in the coming weeks, as Macron seeks a new political boost amid the economic difficulties caused by the virus crisis. French authorities have faced criticism during the pandemic over the shortage of masks, testing capacity and moving ahead with the first round of elections rather than imposing a prior shutdown.
Prime Minister Edouard Philippe, whose work may be threatened by the reorganization, won a great victory in his hometown of Le Havre, where he ran for mayor.
Philippe has seen his popularity increase significantly in recent weeks. You can appoint another person to act as mayor if you remain in charge of the government.
Recent opinion polls show that Macron’s popularity rating is around 40 percent, which is higher than before the virus outbreak.
His party, Republic on the Move, had no candidates at all races and, in some cases, supported local left or right politicians.
Government spokeswoman Sibeth Ndiaye acknowledged the party’s modest result in the elections and stressed that planting local roots “is taking time.”
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The conservative Republican party, which was the big winner in the 2014 municipal elections and has a strong network of local elected officials, seemed to succeed again.
The far-right National Rally, against immigration, won a symbolic victory in the southern city of Perpignan, leading Louis Aliot to become the first party member to lead a city of more than 100,000 inhabitants.
