Le Pen gains strength in Northern Catalonia

BarcelonaThe far right is not making as much progress as it would like across France, but it is gaining new municipalities and strengthening its position in Northern Catalonia. National Rally (RN), Marine Le Pen's party, already secured the mayorship of Perpignan a week ago with a swift majority in the first round, and this Sunday it won in the second round of the municipal elections In Ribesaltes and Canohès, in Roussillon. The far-right Steve Fortel also won in Elna, while the left held firm in Cabestany and won the mayoralty of Prada (Conflent), traditionally held by the right.

In Perpignan, the most populated city with more than 120,000 inhabitants, Louis Aliot's victory with 51.4% of the votes The 15th already foreshadowed an advance by the far right, which is consolidating Northern Catalonia as one of its strongholds in France. This Sunday proved it with Julien Potel's first-place finish in Ribesaltes, a town of over 9,000 people. The National Renewal (RN) candidate secured 45% of the vote, ahead of Amélie Parraud (35%) and Laurianne Rawcliffe (20%). Meanwhile, Le Pen's Carla Muti won the mayoralty of Canohès (population over 6,000) with 40% of the vote, ahead of Gilles Trilles (33%) of the left and Denis Fourcade (27%) of the right.

Particularly significant is the victory of the far right in Elna. A traditional stronghold of the left, where the long-serving communist and Catalan nationalist mayor Nicolas Garcia governed until now, the municipality of the famous Swiss maternity hospital is now in the hands of the far-right Steve Fortel, who in this case is not part of the National Rally. In the second round, he obtained 48% of the votes, defeating the leftist and Garcia's successor, André Tribes (41%), and the centrist Marie-Ange Izquierdo (11%). The fact that this third list did not withdraw from the race after the first round split the vote against the far right.

In total, eighteen municipalities in Northern Catalonia held mayoral elections this Sunday, after the remaining elections had already been decided a week earlier by absolute majorities or because only one list of candidates had been presented. One of the municipalities still pending was Cabestany, with 10,700 inhabitants. In this case, the left did manage to block the National Rally (Reagrupament Nacional). The communist Édith Pugnet will retain the mayoralty after securing 56% of the vote, defeating Le Pen's Olivier Mas, who garnered 43% of the vote, and the right-wing candidate Jean-Pierre Brazes, who failed to reach 1%.

And this wasn't the only victory for the left. One of the notable developments in these municipal elections is the left's top spot on the list in Prada, the capital of Conflent. Candidate Aude Vivès secured 52% of the vote, wresting power from the right in one of its historical strongholds, a town of over 6,000 people.