Sunday’s municipal elections in France selected mayors and local teams across the country, from small villages to the largest cities, and they gave political parties an early check on their electoral machinery before the 2027 presidential election when Emmanuel Macron’s term ends. While campaigning centered on local, grassroots issues, the results also drew national attention as observers looked for clues about how parties might perform in the next presidential contest and, in particular, whether the far-right National Rally is continuing to build momentum.
More than 904,000 candidates for municipal posts were on ballots across roughly 35,000 villages, towns and cities. In areas where the outcome was not decided in the first round, a second round of voting next Sunday was expected to narrow fields and determine final results.
In Paris, projections from polling agencies suggested a possible suspenseful runoff for the city’s mayor, with multiple candidates advancing. Incumbent Socialist Mayor Anne Hidalgo, elected in 2014 and reelected in 2020, announced she would not seek a third term, after serving through the aftermath of extremist attacks in 2015 and the lead-up to the Paris Olympics in 2024.
Marseille, France’s second-largest city, was also seen as a contest likely to land in the second round, with incumbent left-wing Mayor Benoît Payan facing a challenge from the National Rally’s candidate, Franck Allisio. In other key locations, projections pointed to a strong National Rally showing in the Mediterranean port of Toulon, a major naval base, and to a projected first-round lead for National Rally ally Eric Ciotti in Nice, also on the Mediterranean.
National Rally President Jordan Bardella, speaking as attention turned toward the second round, said voters expressed “a deep desire for change” and called for additional backing next Sunday. “In 7 days, your vote can change the face of many French towns,” Bardella said. “Change isn’t waiting for 2027. It starts next Sunday.”
Socialist Party leader Olivier Faure urged voters not to give the National Rally momentum as it gears up for its effort to win the Elysee Palace in 2027. “The march of the extreme right to the Elysee isn’t inevitable,” he said. “As soon as next Sunday, we can — we must — create new hope for 2027.”
National Rally performances in the municipal elections were also being studied for indications of whether the party has been hurt by the prospect that Marine Le Pen might be barred from running again for president in 2027. Last year, a French court convicted Le Pen of embezzlement and prohibited her from seeking public office for five years, and she is hoping an appeals court clears her in a key ruling set for July 7; a decision against her could disrupt her presidential ambitions.
The election also left room for political maneuvering in cities where three, four or more candidates appeared to advance from the first round. In those places, horse trading in the days ahead could lead some teams to partner or to drop out, reshaping the second-round contests.
In the northern English Channel port of Le Havre, former Prime Minister and incumbent Mayor Édouard Philippe came out on top in the first round, with official results showing his lead. If he won the runoff against two other candidates who also advanced, the outcome could give Philippe, who served as Macron’s first prime minister, a platform as he faces an expected push for the presidency.
Campaigning in the municipal election period was also shaped by international developments, including the Iran war and its impacts on fuel prices, as well as other global concerns, which left less bandwidth for local races. Jérôme Fourquet, director of the opinion department at polling institute IFOP, said in an interview with Le Parisien that U.S. President Donald Trump and other factors diverted attention from mayoral contests. “We now live at the rhythm of announcements from Trump and of strikes in the Middle East. In this context, there has been very little bandwidth for the municipals,” Fourquet said.