Paris was still waiting, Sunday, March 15 in the evening, the lifts by district, but the outgoing mayor PS, Anne Hidalgo, seemed largely at the head of a ballot whose second round is, as elsewhere, suspended from the coronavirus pandemic.

According to first estimates, Anne Hidalgo would point at the top with 30% of the voting intentions and a larger gap than expected on the LR candidate, Rachida Dati (22%), before the representative of the presidential majority Agnès Buzyn (17 to 18 %) and environmentalist David Belliard (between 11 and 12%).

Follow the dissident and ex-LREM Cédric Villani (between 6.7 and 8%) and the rebellious Danielle Simonnet (between 4.5 and 5%), according to the Ipsos / Sopra Steria surveys for France Télévisions, Radio France and LCP and Ifop-Fiducial for M6 and Sud Radio.

Like the rest of the country, in the midst of a coronavirus pandemic, the first estimates indicate a participation which collapsed to the tune of 43%, a clear decrease compared to 2014 (58.4%).

For Anne Hidalgo, the outgoing bonus therefore seems to be working and makes it difficult to elect her main challenger Rachida Dati, who nevertheless outstripped her several times in terms of voting intentions. In addition, the candidate on the right sorely lacks reserve of votes for the second round, which makes it even more complicated a victory.

"We will not accept that the first round is canceled!"

As for walkers, the former Minister of Health Agnès Buzyn has failed to lie the polls and stagnates below 20%. However, the candidate who entered the campaign barely a month ago still believes in her chances and is already laying "the first milestones for alliances by sector", according to those around her.

In Anne Hidalgo's camp, we also hope to forge alliances quickly. Still it is necessary that the second round is held, which is uncertain. The brutal acceleration of the coronavirus pandemic raises fears of a postponement that would de facto cancel the entire election.

In a tweet Sunday evening from 8 pm, Anne Hidalgo asked "the government to specify as of (Sunday) evening all the necessary additional measures that will protect the French against the major health crisis".

The health of our fellow citizens must be our only concern. I therefore ask the government to specify as of this evening all the essential additional measures which will make it possible to protect the French in the face of the major health crisis we are going through. (2/2)

- Anne Hidalgo (@Anne_Hidalgo) March 15, 2020

In the entourage of the outgoing mayor, Jean-Louis Missika warned at midday: "The peak transmission will be in the middle of the week, but we will not accept that the first round is canceled!". "For the second round, there are plenty of solutions such as postal voting which would allow a reasonable time to be met," he said.

"We no longer have a place to negotiate"

In Agnes Buzyn's camp, also in the middle of the day, we "did not believe" in the cancellation of the election, but the situation is changing from hour to hour and the decision is expected at the start of the week, in concert with scientists, promised the Prime Minister.

Uncertainty therefore completely upsets the inter-turn rally, crucial in the Parisian election and its 17 sectors where so many elections are played.

The campaign director of the ecologist David Belliard, Hélène Bracon, warned that "if we do not know what is going on for the second round tonight, we will not negotiate with anyone, nor (Anne) Hidalgo, neither (Cédric) Villani, nor (Danielle) Simonnet ".

Ironically, the Novotel where any negotiations were to take place "puts us out. We no longer have a place to negotiate", she added, admitting to dreading very difficult results in Paris: "I I'm afraid we’re going to shit like shit. I think Hidalgo scores very well. "

"All the staff are asking the question of whether we are negotiating tonight or not," also whispered a source close to Villani, who does not seem to have managed to shake up the deal as he expected.

With AFP

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