This is at least one point on which the Barnier government is marking a break. On Tuesday 24 September, the new Minister responsible for Transport, François Durovray, made it clear that he would remain president (Les Républicains, LR) of the Essonne departmental council. Fabrice Loher, responsible for the Sea, believes that his new duties will not prevent him from remaining mayor (UDI) of Lorient (Morbihan). The same is true of Gil Avérous (various right-wing parties), Minister for Sports, in Châteauroux, and Nicolas Daragon (LR), Minister responsible for daily security, in Valence.
Several laws, the most recent of which dates back to 2014, have prohibited the accumulation of parliamentary mandates with those of a local executive. Moreover, there is no legal obligation for ministers. It was Lionel Jospin, Socialist Prime Minister from 1997 to 2002, who imposed its use. It was even part of the “ethics charter” that President François Hollande’s ministers were required to sign upon their appointment in 2012.
Of course, the rule has never been inviolable. “Doctrines are made not to be applied dogmatically”Lionel Jospin himself had made contemporaneous moves. Between 2015 and 2017, for example, Jean-Yves Le Drian was able to combine the roles of Minister of Defence and President of the Brittany regional council. In 2020, Minister Gérald Darmanin retained his mandate as mayor for a few months after his re-election in Tourcoing (North). And Rachida Dati, Minister of Culture, remained mayor for 7 years.my district of Paris.
Apart from these few cases, the doctrine has prevailed. Under the Barnier government, the exception has become the rule again. “In fact, I intend to remain the department chair.François Durovray said on TF1, “Simply because we also have major challenges in the communities and it is important that there are elected officials who are aware of the issue. It is also the Prime Minister’s wish to receive feedback from the territory.”
The longevity of the government is questionable
An argument that Nicolas Daragon takes up. Responsible for daily security, the mayor of Valencia recalls that it is an issue that “it concerns all local elected officials”including him, and that this contributed to his appointment to Michel Barnier’s team. Moreover, Mr. Daragon continues, it was even less a question of “betraying the commitment made to the Valentinois” to be a local elected official, “It is my DNA, I don’t know how to do anything other than get elected in my city”.
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