Bordeaux’s current Green mayor Pierre Hurmic is hoping an alliance of several parties will help him retain the post for a second term.
However, an alliance of centre and right-wing parties, a surprising independent candidate and a sizable left-wing base are looking to unseat the incumbent mayor.
The first round of the municipal elections to return councillors and a mayor to the city take place this Sunday (March 15).
Below, we cover the main points of each candidate’s programme.
Pierre Hurmic – Greens, Socialists, Communists
Elected as part of a ‘Green wave’ during the last elections in 2020, Pierre Hurmic is hoping the electoral alliance between Greens, Socialists, and Communists will see him retain his post, however several other candidates are close behind him in recent polls.
Offering to continue the ‘greenifying’ of Bordeaux, Mr Hurmic wants to redraw the city’s districts, with 30 local areas replacing the current eight and allowing for greater resident participation in local decisions.
He is also planning to introduce fixed lower tariffs for city amenities such as swimming pools and parking (with pricing based on resident income), and create a ‘low carbon district’ around the ‘Le Lac’ area.
200 new crèche places and a focus on eliminating homelessness for children are included in his programme, alongside plans to increase the amount of social housing in the city.
He has been criticised, however, for a lack of police presence in the city.
Thomas Cazenave – Renaissance, Les Républicains, Horizons, MoDem
Civil servant and former Minister for Public Accounts Thomas Cazenave is leading the main challenge against the incumbent mayor, heading a list of centrist and right-wing parties.
Born and raised in Bordeaux, Mr Cazenave previously ran in 2020, where he finished third and dropped out to favour the Les Républicains candidate (who ultimately lost against Mr Hurmic).
His main policies are to arm all municipal police officers (currently only a quarter are) as well as double the number of officers on patrol.
He wants to bring back full night-time street lighting in Bordeaux (parts of the city see lights switched off at certain hours), and create two ‘centres of excellence’ for AI research and water conservation.
An economic focus will see Mr Cazenave freeze taxes, launch an investigation into public spending, and cut down on city projects deemed ‘useless’, citing the current Tourny, cable car, and Île d’Arcins projects.
Philippe Dessertine - independent
A well-known economics professor, Philippe Dessertine is performing well in the polls and is currently third place behind the incumbent mayor and Mr Cazenave.
His primary plan is to beef up municipal police numbers, as well as convert 78,000m² of unused office space into housing, primarily for young people and students.
Increasing the autonomy of Bordeaux’s local quarters by assigning them their own budgets is a major divergence from other candidates, and Mr Dessertine said he would rely on the opinions of experts when launching major projects or plans.
To deal with what Mr Dessertine believes is an impending debt crisis, all public projects will have their full associated costs published alongside them, and there will be greater coordination between authorities to ensure the responsible parties cover project costs (and to avoid overlap in budgetary spending).
Nordine Raymond - La France Insoumise
Representing the far-left party, Nordine Raymond has a slew of policies going in the opposite direction from his competitors, namely including disarming all municipal officers in favour of increasing the number of city mediators.
He also wants to ban cruise ships from docking at the city’s port as well as introduce free public transport for all city residents.
Housing-wise, he wants to increase social housing, regulate the rental market to avoid abusive rental practices and evictions.
He also plans for a droit d’alimentation, a right to food, to avoid hunger in the city.
Julie Rechagneux – Rassemblement National
The far-right candidate, currently polling at around 6%, is unlikely to make it to the second round amid a large vote share for the major centre/right-wing and independent candidates, and some pressure from fellow far-right party Reconquête (polling at around 3%).
However, the party hopes to improve its vote share in major cities for the upcoming election cycle, proving it can compete in these battlegrounds alongside rural areas and midsize towns where it has performed well since the turn of the 21st century.
Choosing to move away from the party’s immigration rhetoric and focus solely on local issues, major policies include arming all municipal officers and increasing security presence.
A particular focus on relaunching a major project to construct an eastern bypass road around the city is included, as well as improving traffic flow to cut pollution.
She also plans to cut city spending and improve investment in the city’s budget.
Philippe Poutou - Nouveau Parti anticapitaliste
A rarity among the major cities, the extreme left candidate has a small chance of reaching the 5% threshold required to join with another party’s list in the second round.
In the 2020 elections, Mr Poutou was backed by La France Insoumise and received around 11% of the first round vote share, and then 9% in the second round.
This netted the revolutionary party three of the 65 council seats in a city traditionally seen as ‘right-wing’.
This time an inverse agreement may appear, with Mr Poutou backing La France Insoumise in the second round.
Currently, the group are polling at around 3% and have little chance of winning, although the name recognition of Mr Poutou – the most famous of the extreme-left and often interviewed on TV to offer this perspective – may help them reach the threshold to back La France Insoumise in the second round.
He backs free public transport and improved social housing.
