While it is no longer possible for mayors to combine their local office with a parliamentary mandate, they can on the other hand reconcile it with the office of minister. However, the Prime Minister announced to members of his government that they could certainly run in municipal elections, but that they would have to choose between their posts as minister and mayor if they won.
If they are elected, they have two choices. Either they leave office in government to invest in their local mandate, or they cede their place as mayor to the elected official of their choice to keep their post as minister for a while. In government, there are ten to run for the next municipal elections which will take place on Sunday 15 and 22 March. Some ministers are top of the list, others are on supporting lists.
List headers
- Gérald Darmanin, in Tourcoing (North)
The only minister-candidate officially invested by the presidential party, Gérald Darmanin is at the head of the LREM list in Tourcoing. The Minister of Action and Public Accounts had been elected mayor of the city in 2014 under the UMP label, but had been forced to leave his local mandate in 2017, when he was appointed to the government. However, he remained the first deputy mayor of Tourcoing. "If I am at the top of the list, it is to be mayor," he said in an interview with La Voix du Nord on January 27, 2020.
- Édouard Philippe, in Le Havre (Seine-Maritime)
Mayor of Le Havre from 2010 to 2017, Édouard Philippe is running again for municipal elections in the port city. He is a candidate for the head of the list, but if he is elected he will not leave his post as Prime Minister. He announced that he would leave his place as mayor to Jean-Baptiste Gastinne, outgoing mayor LR, while affirming his desire to become mayor again when his activities in Matignon cease. Since the head of government is not a member of any party, La République En Marche did not officially invest him, but gave him his support.
- Franck Riester, in Coulommiers (Seine-et-Marne)
It is as head of the list that the Minister of Culture Franck Riester is running for Coulommiers. The latter was already elected mayor of this commune of Seine-et-Marne in 2008 and in 2014. He had been forced to leave his office as mayor when he was elected deputy in June 2017. He announced that he wished stay in government regardless of the outcome of the election. In the event of a victory, he plans to entrust his role as mayor to Laurence Picard, current second assistant, and to recover it when he leaves the government. The minister-candidate is not officially invested by La République En Marche, his candidacy is simply supported by the party.
They are on a list
- Gabriel Attal, in Vanves (Hauts-de-Seine)
Gabriel Attal is in second place on the list of Séverine Edou, the LREM candidate in Vanves. The Secretary of State to the Minister of National Education and Youth has been a municipal councilor in this commune of Hauts-de-Seine since 2014.
- Geneviève Darrieussecq, in Mont-de-Marsan (Landes)
Geneviève Darrieussecq appears in Mont-de-Marsan on the list of Charles Dayot, the outgoing mayor of the commune who had succeeded her when she was appointed secretary of state to the Minister of the Armed Forces in 2017. Indeed, the latter was twice elected mayor of this commune of Landes in 2008 and in 2014.
- Jean-Baptiste Djebbari, in Limoges (Haute-Vienne)
It is in Limoges that the Secretary of State for Transport is running for municipal elections. Jean-Baptiste Djebbari is on Monique Boulestin's list, a union list between the Radical and Citizen Movement and La République En Marche. First announced as number 2 on this list, the place it occupies is ultimately still uncertain.
- Christelle Dubos, in Sadirac (Gironde)
A municipal councilor in Sadirac since 2014, Christelle Dubos appears again on a list in her village of Gironde, but not as head of the list. The Secretary of State to the Ministry of Health and Solidarity became assistant to the mayor of the commune in 2014, before leaving this function when she was elected to the Assembly.
- Marc Fesneau, in Marchenoir (Loir-et-Cher)
Elected twice mayor of Marchenoir in 2008 and 2014 under the MoDem label, Marc Fesneau had left this position when he was elected deputy in 2017. The Minister of Relations with Parliament is on a candidate list in this village located in the Loir -et-Cher.
- Sébastien Lecornu, in Vernon (Eure)
If we know that the Minister responsible for Territorial Communities is a candidate for Vernon, we do not know what place he occupies on the list. He had elected mayor of this commune of Eure in 2014, a function he had left a year later when he was elected president of the departmental council of Eure. However, he remained the first deputy mayor of the town, François Ouzilleau. It was with the latter that he recently entered the campaign for municipal elections.
- Agnès Pannier-Runacher, in Paris XVIe
Agnès Pannier-Runacher is running for municipal elections in the XVIth arrondissement of Paris in support of the candidate invested by the République En Marche. The Secretary of State to the Minister of Economy and Finance is therefore on the "Paris ensemble" list led by Hanna Sebbah in the 16th arrondissement.
- Marlène Schiappa, in Paris XIVe
Marlène Schiappa has announced that she is a candidate in municipal elections in the 14th arrondissement of Paris to support the candidate invested by La République En Marche. The Secretary of State for Gender Equality and the Fight against Discrimination is in second place on the "Paris ensemble" list led by Éric Azière in the 14th arrondissement. She also affirmed her willingness to stay in government.