At the beginning of July, the Council of State examined the requests of Violette Spillebout (LREM) and Stéphane Baly (EELV), who demanded the cancellation of the municipal election in Lille. Not surprisingly, the two former opponents of Martine Aubry were rejected.
It was their last chance to see the match of the municipal election in Lille replayed and it has just taken off after the Council of State rendered its decision on Tuesday. “The requests presented by Ms. Spillebout […] on the one hand and by M. Baly […] on the other hand, are rejected ”, concludes the Council of State in its decision that 20 minutes was able to consult. “We are delighted, even if we have always been serene”, they say on the side of the list “Lille in common, sustainable and united” which had carried the candidacy of Martine Aubry in March and June 2020.
Many grievances, but not enough
There was in any case little suspense, this decision going in the same direction as the recommendations of the public rapporteur presented at the hearing, these recommendations themselves following the decision pronounced by the administrative court of Lille in March. 2021. However, the complaints put forward by the applicants to request the annulment of the election were numerous: irregularity in the judgment of the administrative court, disregard of several provisions of the electoral code, pressure exerted on voters, infringement of the freedom to vote, irregularities in certain signings…
None of this, according to the administrative court, justified questioning the sincerity of the ballot. Same observation on the side of the Council of State. Elected with 227 votes ahead of the environmental candidate, Martine Aubry is, and will remain, mayor of Lille until 2026.