For Gérald Darmanin, the elections follow each other and are similar to Tourcoing. Arriving in the lead (39.08%) on Sunday in the first round of the legislative elections in the 10th constituency of the North, the current Minister of the Interior (Together!) is on track to win his mandate as a deputy against Leslie Mortreux (Nupes) whom he will face in the second round.
It’s simple, since 2012, Darmanin has won every election he has run for. Deputy, mayor, vice-president of the MEL, general councilor, regional councilor, the elected official has exercised in ten years all the possible and unimaginable mandates. At not even 40 years old, the Northerner has managed to firmly anchor himself in the second city of the Lille metropolis.
A right-wing man elected in a left-wing city
“All these mandates have allowed him to be in contact with a large number of voters and to play a relay role between the various institutions and all the other elected officials. This allowed him to maintain relationships with voters who ensure their votes at the local level while positioning himself for other candidates at the national level, ”explains political scientist Tristan Haute.
This is the whole Darmanin paradox. This right-wing man, born into politics as parliamentary assistant to the RPR Christian Vanneste, became in 2014 mayor of a city historically anchored on the left. In the last presidential election, the Tourquennois even placed Jean-Luc Mélenchon well ahead of Marine Le Pen and Emmanuel Macron. But is it really a feat to see Darmanin taking his ease on left-wing lands?
Business hasn’t really weakened him at the polls
“Tourcoing is less of a bastion of the left than Roubaix. And the 10th district of the North is quite marked on the right ”, nuance Tristan Haute. “It’s a very popular city where abstention has risen sharply in recent years. It is a city which has almost the same industrial history and which is as unequal as Roubaix. But its migratory history is less marked than in Roubaix, ”continues the lecturer in political science at the University of Lille.
Still, Darmanin seems to resist at the polls all the cases that stick to his skin. Accused of rape since 2017 by a woman, the minister received a dismissal requested by the Paris prosecutor’s office on January 12, 2022. Another file for abuse of weakness on another woman was dismissed in 2018. Without count the latest controversy over counterfeit Stade de France tickets. Stories without consequences… or almost during the elections.
Full first round results here
Disconnect between local and national
“There is always a form of disconnection between the national and the local. The establishment of Darmanin dates from before its national notoriety and business. That may explain why he manages to attract votes on him. Even if his score in the first round of the legislative elections is a mixed success. For example, he is only two points ahead of his competitor Nupes in the Tourquennoise part of the 10th district, which is a real surprise,” concludes Tristan Haute.
In a context of weakening of the macronie at the national level, Darmanin remains the big favorite of the 2nd round in his constituency. But the hardest could well begin for a minister who has not yet experienced electoral failures.