Key maps of the municipal elections in France

BarcelonaThe French municipal elections this Sunday These were the last electoral test before the presidential elections scheduled for 2027, where the support base of the far right and the resilience of the main parties were tested in a fragmented political landscape marked by parliamentary instability. We've compiled some charts to help understand the results:

Is the far right losing ground?

Although Marine Le Pen's party has won more mayoralties than ever before, the National Rally (RN) has not achieved the expected electoral success, nor has it won any major cities like Marseille or Toulon, where it had high hopes for the mayoralty. In many cases, the party's candidate who advanced to the second round did not garner enough support. The only major French city that fell to the far right was Nice, but there it was not the RN that won, but rather the ultraconservative UDR party, led by Éric Ciotti. In Perpignan, the RN retained the mayoralty in the first round.

The left is consolidating its position in the metropolises

These elections confirm the divide between urban and rural areas in France. In metropolitan areas like Paris, Lyon, Marseille, and Bordeaux, the left has shown that, united under a single banner (without La France Insoumise), it is virtually unbeatable in urban and multicultural centers. In contrast, in the so-called "diagonal of emptiness," the strip of land that crosses France from northeast to southwest (rural, aging, and less populated areas), the traditional right-wing party Els Republicans is holding its ground.

Northern Catalonia, a stronghold of the far right

The black of Reagrupament Nacional is spreading across the regions of Northern Catalonia. If Louis Aliot's victory in Perpignan in 2020 was an earthquake, this one in 2026... The far right has taken over municipalities like Elna or RibesaltesIt is gaining strength not only as a protest vote, but as an increasingly articulated force in municipal management, fueled by discontent over territorial imbalances.

Lessons for the presidential elections

These elections were the last major test before the 2027 presidential elections. What lessons can each party learn? Marine Le Pen's party suffered a major setback, failing to win any of the major cities it had hoped for. However, with 68 municipalities, it achieved its best result ever in a local election. The party leader, and likely next candidate, Jordan Bardella, touted it as a success: "We have made the biggest gain in history."

For the left, these elections have served to demonstrate that they have a better chance of winning the presidential election by running on a unified ticket without the radical left-wing LFI. As for the center, former Prime Minister Édouard Philippe has been elected mayor of his city, Le Havre, which puts him in a better position to run for president in 2027. But aside from this victory, it has become clear that Macronism lacks relevance. Given that Emmanuel Macron cannot run again next year, his movement risks becoming irrelevant and seeing the presidential election turn into a head-to-head contest between the far right and the united left. Without a clear candidate, an alliance with the traditional right-wing party The Republicans, which has shown it still has a strong grassroots base, could be a lifeline to avoid disappearing.