Election success for Britons
Britons have done well in the municipal elections – and were the most numerous nationality standing after the French
ALL of the Britons featured in March’s edition as standing in the municipal elections have won their council seats.
Rosamund Williams in Montcuq, Lot; Adrian Cox, who was up for re-election in Arromanche-les-Bains, Basse-Normandie; and the former prime minister’s wife, Welshwoman Penelope Fillon, have all been elected in their respective areas.
Rosamund Williams, who was part of Alain Lalabarde’s list, elected at the first round with 58.45%, takes up her post as councillor for the first time, as does Mrs Fillon.
Mrs Williams said: “I’m looking forward to the challenge. I think our list was elected with a clear majority, which was pleasing; now our job is to get on with the things that the village wants us to do.
“There’s no doubt that we British approach things in a slightly different way and it’s always good to have a mix of approaches and ideas. There’s a significant population of Britons here, so I think it’s good they have representation.”
Dr Susan Collard of the University of Sussex’s politics department said of all of the non-French candidates Britons were the most numerous standing this time – 1,525 out of 5,954 (the total French candidates being 926,462).
Next were the Belgians (1,186) and Portuguese (1,045).
Le Monde also commented on the participation of the British, mentioning two places where four and six Britons respectively were standing: Quillan, near Carcassonne (Aude) and Marval in Haute-Vienne.
In 2008, the paper said, there were a total 411 British councillors elected, mainly in the Charente, Dordogne, Aude and Haute-Vienne.
The large majority of Britons were standing in communities of less than 3,500 residents, one exception being a single Briton standing in Paris, in the 18th arrondissement.
While things went well for some Britons, one candidate in the Languedoc-Roussillon, Kerry Lanfrey, lost out when the votes for her entire list were nullified because the ballot papers did not list her nationality, as the French electoral rules state is required for non-French nationals.
The justification given for the law is that electors should know that the person cannot become mayor or deputy, and that they will not be able to vote in the senatorial elections.
