- Title: France's Macron takes drubbing in local elections, Greens surge
- Date: 29th June 2020
- Summary: STREET (SOUNDBITE) (French) 42 YEAR-OLD LAWYER LIVING IN PARIS, SOPHIE ANDRIEU, SAYING: "The cycling lanes, the (closure of) riverbank roads was a good thing too, and if Paris needs to change we need more than one mandate, when big changes are made we're not always popular straight away but for a long-term transformation then it's justified." MAN READING NEWSPAPER (SOUNDBITE) (French) 80 YEAR-OLD FRENCH MAN, NORBERT BOUZEREAU, SAYING: "She has some kind of openness, her track record isn't disastrous, she was criticized for a lot of things but I find that Paris, generally speaking and Anne Hidalgo in particular, has had a good mandate for what she's done." PARIS STREET
- Embargoed: 13th July 2020 11:05
- Keywords: Emmanuel Macron French local elections Municipal elections coronavirus greens mayors
- Location: PARIS & LE TOUQUET-PARIS-PLAGE, FRANCE
- City: PARIS & LE TOUQUET-PARIS-PLAGE, FRANCE
- Country: France
- Topics: Government/Politics,Elections/Voting
- Reuters ID: LVA00ACKF8VGN
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text:France President Emmanuel Macron's centrist party received a drubbing on Sunday (June 29) in municipal elections, as the Greens celebrated victories in several big cities after a surge in support.
In this second round of voting, turnout was low and people wore masks because of the novel coronavirus pandemic. The first round was held just days before Macron imposed one of Europe's strictest lockdowns in mid-March.
Macron had hoped the elections would help anchor his young party in towns and cities across France, including Paris, ahead of an anticipated 2022 re-election bid.
But aides had more recently been playing down expectations and the sweeping wins by the Greens, who in some cities joined forces with leftist allies, may compel Macron to reshuffle his government to win back disenfranchised left-wing voters.
Exit polls showed the Greens winning in Lyon, Marseille, Bordeaux and Strasbourg, building on the momentum created by their strong performance in France in last year's European Parliament elections.
In Paris, the biggest prize of all, the incumbent Socialist mayor Anne Hidalgo celebrated victory after a shambolic campaign by Macron's camp.
France's 35,000 mayors set policy on issues from urban planning to education and the environment. While local factors typically drive voter choices, they give the electorate an opportunity to support or punish a president mid-mandate.
(Production: Noemie Olive, Lucien Libert, Emilie Delwarde) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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