Planes, photos and municipal elections: a week of political echoes in Gironde

The municipal elections in Bordeaux are inspiring many vocations. There's a traffic jam in the center-right with four candidates, but the competition is also fierce on the far right. After Julie Rechagneux for the National Rally , Virginie Bonthoux will be defending the colors of Reconquête, Éric Zemmour's movement. The representative of the Parents Vigilants association in Nouvelle-Aquitaine tells Le Figaro: "I'd like to forge a very broad alliance, extending all the way to the LR." Be careful, with so much diversity, it could turn into a Spanish inn...

Little music in Pessac

For several weeks, USSAP Boxing manager and trainer Mohamed Jamaï has been playing a political tune. The man, who is also president of the Regional Boxing Committee, is reportedly preparing for a possible candidacy in the Pessac municipal elections. Is this a way to raise the stakes to defend his club, which is lamenting cuts in municipal subsidies? A spotlight on neighborhoods while Mohamed Jamaï is based in Saige? While the road to a candidacy is still long, this prospect is not going to delight the mayor of Pessac, even though Mohamed Jamaï was one of his supporters during his first term. Because, in 2026, every vote is expected to carry significant weight.

It's hardly a surprise: the announcement that the intersecting runway would be maintained sparked divided reactions among elected officials. The mayor of Pessac took the opportunity to once again attack Bordeaux Métropole President Christine Bost, accusing her of prioritizing the interests of her commune of Eysines. Franck Raynal calls it a "political decision." Christine Bost dismisses this analysis, pointing out that Transport Minister Philippe Tabarot (who is a Republican) is far from attending the same conferences as the mayors of the communes affected by the main runway. "Franck Raynal is getting himself tangled up," Christine Bost snaps. If it's an airport conveyor belt, be careful not to end up in a luggage hold!

Double cap

The mood was festive Thursday evening at the Réolais community council in South Gironde. Applause and congratulations followed the broadcast of the video inspired by the series "Bref," which retraces the elected officials' fight to obtain classification as a France Ruralités Revitalisation zone (with tax exemptions). "It's creating a buzz" (16,000 views), rejoiced President Francis Zaghet. That was without counting on a party-pooper elected official. "The film is great, but using photos that don't belong to you without asking is not done. It's called theft." "You're a photographer, but above all, an elected official!" they tried to counter. After a bitter cold snap, the incident was declared closed at the end of the council meeting when the transfer of rights email was found and the person concerned apologized.

We can better understand the reluctance of Nathalie Delattre and her municipal opposition group Bordeaux Ensemble to implement environmental parking pricing on the streets of Bordeaux, more commonly known as weight-based parking. By examining the Minister of Tourism's declaration of assets to the High Authority for Transparency in Public Life, we discover that the Bordeaux mayoral candidate is the owner of a Range Rover purchased for 94,000 euros in 2021, a luxurious urban 4x4 whose weight is well over two tons and therefore surcharged for parking on public roads. Fortunately, it has a Crit'Air 1 sticker.

Still in Nathalie Delattre's asset declaration, this 95-square-meter Gironde house, purchased for €68,500 in 2002 and now valued at €450,000, more than six times its initial value: the minister has a flair for finding good deals in real estate. And the Palais Rohan, good or bad deal?

Ministers on call

"We're holding a Council of Ministers meeting on July 4 in Libourne," jokes Mayor Philippe Buisson. A joke? Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau is expected, along with Minister of Regional Planning and Decentralization François Rebsamen, for the Villes de France congress on July 3 and 4. Prime Minister François Bayrou is expected on the same Saturday, July 4, for the inauguration of the new headquarters of Ceva Santé animale, accompanied by Minister of Agriculture Annie Genevard. Hopefully, there won't be any political upheaval between now and then. The presentation of the flag to the newly created ^4th Civil Security Regiment in Libourne, scheduled for Friday, July 3, has been postponed at least twice. One of which was due to censorship...

Loïc Ballongue, the deputy for Renaissance MP Sophie Panonacle of the Arcachon Basin, is running for the Lanton municipal elections. In 2020, he was on the list led by Tony Billard, which the Macronist party supported at the time and which garnered just over 23% of the vote. Tony Billard withdrew in the second round. Loïc Ballongue had already announced his candidacy, but he wants to accelerate and is setting a date today to unveil his campaign's main priorities. But things are changing in Lanton: the diverse right-wing Marie Larrue, elected since 2014, is not running again . This inevitably opens up the possibilities a little more.

Patrick Davet, LR mayor (and departmental councilor) of La Teste-de-Buch, is running again in 2026. And it hasn't escaped anyone's notice, as he has said it over and over again. But another candidate is running again, just like in 2020. This is Dominique Junjaud, a well-known shopkeeper in La Teste. He will officially launch his candidacy on June 17 as a "committed centrist within the Horizons movement," the one led by former Prime Minister Édouard Philippe. In 2020, he merged with the list led by Macronist Stéphane Géraut (even though the presidential party hadn't nominated him) before the first round, during the winter, to avoid contributing to the candidate bloat, he said at the time. Ultimately, the joint list, on which Dominique Junjaud was in eleventh place, received 2.75% of the vote. In 2026, he will therefore be in the lead...

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