In the Community of Communes (CdC) of Réolais in South Gironde, 41 mayor’s seats will be contested.
Bande à part
Of the 41 municipalities within the CdC, 34 are only contested by a single list. “It makes the voting a bit Soviet,” jokes André Marc Barnett, the mayor of Aillas, who is seeking a third term against a former colleague. While he laments a “lack of choice”, he also questions the mobilization of voters in the municipalities where the suspense is somewhat limited. “With the end of the panachage, I wonder what interest people will have in coming to vote when they already think everything is decided.” A vote that could then resemble a referendum for or against the current team.
Among these 34 unique lists, 21 are led by an incumbent mayor – including a specific case in Hure, where the incumbent mayor and candidate is in second position on the list (1). However, in 12 of these municipalities with a single list, the mayor is not seeking re-election. “For many of my colleagues, the succession has been prepared within the municipal teams for a long time,” observes for example the mayor of Bourdelles, Jean-Michel Mascotto, who is not running again. He openly mentions “weariness” and “fatigue” of the position.
A little further in Pondaurat, the mayor and president of the CdC Francis Zaghet also scrutinized the lists upon their official publication. “When incumbent mayors do not run again, we sometimes see ambitions emerging. For me, that’s why I never say I won’t run again.” Out of the 41 incumbent mayors in Réolais in South Gironde, 15 are not running again, almost 37% of them (31% on average in the 197 communes of South Gironde).
Duel à La Réole
Highly scrutinized, the medieval city is heading towards an official duel. While initially, four candidacies were mentioned to retain or conquer the city on the banks of the Garonne, Maxime Bonnefoux and Tom Fazembat eventually withdrew. It will therefore be a match between the incumbent mayor Bruno Marty, member of Place Publique, and Rémy Berthonneau, the candidate invested by the National Rally.
A clash of ideas and visions for the city, but also a broader political issue. This year, the National Rally shows a strengthened presence in the department, with 55 declared or supported lists by the party, almost four times more than in the last municipal elections. On the other hand, La Réole remains one of the few municipalities led by a Place Publique elected official, whose media-friendly mayor Bruno Marty has also welcomed the political re-entry of the movement since 2024. This could make La Réole a quasi-political laboratory.
In July 2024, Rémy Berthonneau had garnered 49.59% of the votes in the early legislative elections in the 12th district of Gironde, narrowly losing to Mathilde Feld, the candidate of the New Popular Front (La France insoumise), by 461 votes. However, in La Réole, the vote was more in favor of the NFP candidate, who obtained 53.78% of the votes. This power dynamic may not necessarily be replicated in the municipal elections, where local logics, teams, and projects for the city may weigh more than national labels.
Turn-over, and tomorrow?
With 36% of incumbent mayors not running, the political landscape is expected to change in the territory. New faces will enter municipal councils and, eventually, the CdC. “If we take the case of La Réole, there will certainly be a stronger opposition than today,” notes Francis Zaghet. “And this will inevitably have consequences for the community of communes, at the time of the election of community councilors, scheduled before April 6.”
While counting on a “breakthrough” of the National Rally in the La Réole opposition – and therefore on a victory for the Place Publique candidate – he assures not to worry about it. “As long as we can work together,” he relativizes, as he himself is a candidate for re-election to the presidency of the CdC.
Other two-way matches
Like in La Réole, in six other municipalities, voters will also have the choice between two lists. In Saint-Sève, incumbent mayor Eliam Ardouin is in fourth position on the list Saint-Sève in continuity, led by Chantal Rochereau, the current first deputy. Facing her, the second deputy Damien Suadeau leads the list Together for Saint-Sève.
In Gironde-sur-Dropt, incumbent mayor Philippe Moutier is running again with the list One village, one team, largely composed of incumbent officials: the first three deputies maintain their current order. The fourth deputy Cédric Berthe is in fourth position on the opposing list Heart of the village, led by Sandra Moneron, a newcomer to the electoral race of this village of about 1,500 inhabitants.
On the other side of the Garonne, in Puybarban, Dominique Turbet Delof is running for a new term with the list Together for Puybarban, combining incumbent officials and new candidates. Facing him, Michel Ducout leads the list Let’s move together, which includes among its twelve names a former elected official.
In Bagas, Isabelle Barbe, the current first deputy, leads one of the two lists. In Casseuil, the list Together, for a good living in Casseuil is led by David Gautier, a newcomer, with the former first deputy Marie-Christine Darnauzan in second position. It competes against the list Casseuil between land and Garonne, solely composed of new candidates and led by Jean-Claude Masson.
Finally in Savignac, the fourth deputy Patrick Sequier is leading the list for Tomorrow Savignac, facing Jérôme Daney, who leads the list Savignac Generations.
