Whereas in 2014 the left (which has held 11 out of twenty arrondissements for six years) had yielded to the right only one arrondissement (the ninth), the municipal election in Paris is very uncertain due to the presence of LREM which disturbs the game on the right as on the left. Eight key districts, out of the seventeen that now have the capital, will be particularly scrutinized on the evening of the first round. Overview.
The unknown of central Paris
Which side will the future mayor of central Paris be, the super arrondissement born from the merger of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th centuries, where Anne Hidalgo has her biggest pedestrianization project? The outgoing mayors are two socialists, Ariel Weil (fourth), Pierre Aidenbaum (third), an ecologist (Jacques Boutault in the second) and a Republican (Jean-François Legaret in the first).
Only Ariel Weil, who had succeeded Christophe Girard in 2017, is a candidate for re-election. He faces, among others, the deputy LREM Pacôme Rupin, ex-campaign director of Benjamin Griveaux, the pro-Villani Anne Lebreton, two other elected members of the 4th, but also the ecologist Raphaëlle Rémy-Leleu, ex-spokesperson for 'Dare feminism, and the Republican Aurélien Véron.
Will the 14th century tip over?
In 2014, Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet, the former leader of the Republicans in Paris, had vainly tried to bring down this left-wing district. This time, it is the dissident Walker Cédric Villani who sticks to it. But LREM, in a position of strength in this district with its ally MoDem, does not intend to leave it this pleasure.
Secretary of State Marlène Schiappa, number 2 on the list of the presidential party led by centrist Eric Azière, intends to weigh with all her weight against the outgoing mayor Carine Petit (ex-PS, allied with Anne Hidalgo) and the Republican Marie-Claire Carrère-Gée. In this “swing-state” (likely to tip over, like some American states like Ohio or Florida) par excellence, the uncertainty is total and a quadrangular is possible in the second round.
PODCAST. Griveaux affair, coronavirus… the improbable scenario of municipal in Paris (episode 1)
A highly contested 18th
Can Anne Hidalgo lose the fiefdom of Bertrand Delanoë? Torn from the fight to the right in 1995, the 18th century was coveted by 14 candidates including some stars: former footballer Vikash Dhorasoo, supported by La France Insoumise, ex-TV columnist Pierre Liscia (from the Free movement! By Valérie Pécresse ) and Marcel Campion, the "king" of the fairgrounds.
In a local landscape tarnished by the sordid “crack hill”, the migrant camps, the dirt of the streets and insecurity, the outgoing mayor (PS) Eric Lejoindre is weakened. He faces in particular the center-right deputy Pierre-Yves Bournazel, very established, who is campaigning this time under the colors of LREM. Environmentalists, who arrived at the top of the district in the Europeans with 25.85% of the vote, hope to repeat the feat with Anne-Claire Boux.
Fog in the twentieth
In this borough very anchored on the left, the cards are scrambled. The outgoing mayor (ex-PS) Frédérique Calandra is a candidate for a third term, but now under the banner of LREM. Opposite, Anne Hidalgo's candidate, Eric Pliez, former president of the Samu social, is a novice in politics.
The ecologist Antoinette Guhl came back to the top by a recent survey placing her in 2nd position in front of the outgoing. As for Danielle Simonnet, the rebellious candidate for mayor of Paris, she hopes to be able to stay next Sunday to save her seat on the Council of Paris.
15th, 16th: on the right, the weight of fratricidal duels
LR leader in the capital, Rachida Dati, failed to gain unanimity around her. Several dissenting lists remain against the candidates invested by Les Républicains. The right leaves notably divided in two of its large bastions: the 15th and 16th arrondissements where the outgoing mayors Philippe Goujon and Danièle Giazzi decided to maintain their candidacy.
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A real handicap for the LR candidate since these two districts send respectively 18 and 13 elected to the Council of Paris. So many precious voices that Dati could miss in his quest for the mayor's chair.
In the 17th century, the uncertainty of alliances
The borough will be all the more scrutinized as it is the one where LREM leader Agnès Buzyn has decided to run. The En Marche Republic delighted one of the two districts in this arrondissement during the legislative elections in 2017. Will the presidential party confirm its establishment during the municipal elections?
Uncertainty reigns over the color of the vote of the inhabitants of the new Batignolles district (7,500 more inhabitants) which did not yet exist in 2014. Another major unknown: the second-round alliance. The outgoing mayor (LR) Geoffroy Boulard, for a while tempted by an alliance with En Marche!, Will he get closer to Agnes Buzyn between the two towers?
What fate for the 12th, the other "swing-state"?
With 10 advisers from Paris, the 12th district is one of the key districts of this battle. Anne Hidalgo was not mistaken by investing there as head of the list her first assistant, Emmanuel Grégoire (PS).
Facing him, LREM appointed the former socialist deputy for the riding, Sandrine Mazetier. In the middle of this duel, the elected LR Valérie Montandon hopes to get out of the game thanks to the dynamic instilled by Rachida Dati.
How do you become mayor of Paris?
In each of the 17 districts, Parisian voters elect a Council on March 15 and 22, whose members (364 in total in the capital) will appoint their district mayor. Those at the top of the list will also be advisers to Paris. Their number varies according to the demographic weight of the district. It is these 163 municipal councilors who will elect, on March 28, the future mayor of Paris, who will have to gather at least 82 votes.
