"Let's not relive the day of March 15, 2020," they wrote. About twenty parliamentarians from the majority opposed to the possible holding of the second round of municipal elections in late June, demanded a postponement of "a few months", in a letter to President Emmanuel Macron, Tuesday.
"We do not know what the health situation will be at the end of June. Even if things improve, some people will not dare to vote, in particular the elders. This poses big problems. For me, democracy must not suffer from no compromise ", explains to AFP one of the signatories, MP LREM Blandine Brocard. "Some great democracies have not hesitated to postpone elections for a year. In this period of crisis, it can be useful to keep the teams in place, especially for the reopening of schools," she added.
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Party leaders received Wednesday evening by Édouard Philippe
In their letter, these LREM deputies and senators also point to "the significant legal insecurity of these elections", with an "uncertain (electoral) campaign" and a "gap of more than three months between the first and the second round". Prime Minister Édouard Philippe receives the party leaders on Wednesday evening to discuss the subject.
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The Scientific Council is very careful
In a notice published Tuesday, the Scientific Council did not oppose the holding of the second round in June, but was very cautious. It is "difficult to anticipate an uncertain situation for the coming weeks", according to him. If the elections were held in June, he considers it useful to carry out a new assessment of health conditions 15 days before the date chosen.
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During a videoconference Tuesday between Emmanuel Macron and several mayors, "all the speakers expressed their wish to see the elections and the second round take place as soon as possible. The date of June 28 was mentioned", said the Minister of the Interior, Christophe Castaner.