LR inducts Rachida Dati for the Paris municipal elections and saves Michel Barnier from a fratricidal duel in the legislative elections

"The Republicans unanimously nominated Rachida Dati for the Paris municipal elections" in March 2026, and she "will support Michel Barnier in the partial legislative election in the 2nd constituency of Paris," the party wrote in a press release.

The LR mayor of the 7th arrondissement did not appreciate the announcement of Michel Barnier's candidacy in the election in the 2nd constituency of Paris, a right-wing stronghold threatened last year by a Socialist Party candidate, and had initially announced that she would maintain a dissident candidacy.

Senator Francis Szpiner, who was also seeking nomination for the municipal elections, has withdrawn his candidacy, said LR spokesperson Agnès Evren.

"Reason prevailed" for "a win-win agreement," she told AFP.

Michel Barnier, former Prime Minister under Emmanuel Macron, who was ousted by a motion of censure in the National Assembly in December 2024, thus becomes the sole candidate of the right for the seat of deputy in this constituency straddling the 5th, 6th and 7th arrondissements.

Jean Laussucq, a former colleague of Ms Dati, initially won the election in July 2024 and sat within the Renaissance group, before seeing his election invalidated by the Constitutional Council on July 11, 2025 for irregularities in his campaign accounts.

Michel Barnier then announced that his replacement would be Florence Berthout, mayor (Horizons) of the 5th arrondissement, which is particularly crucial in this election.

In addition to Michel Barnier, two other personalities are currently in the running to try to win this by-election: the National Rally's Thierry Mariani and the socialist Frédérique Bredin, nominated by the Socialist Party and supported by the Ecologists.

The vote is scheduled for September 21 and 28, but the left-wing candidate wrote to Prime Minister François Bayrou on August 18 to ask for the vote to be postponed until the beginning of October, citing in particular the tight deadlines.

Judicial agenda

For her part, Rachida Dati will therefore focus on the 2026 municipal elections, during which she is expected to face Anne Hidalgo's former first deputy, Emmanuel Grégoire, appointed by the Socialist Party last June.

"Tonight, the conquest of Paris has begun. I thank Les Républicains who unanimously granted me their investiture. In Paris, I will work to bring together all the forces of change and I call on all Parisians to join me. Together, we will win!" reacted Ms. Dati on X.

Excluded from the Republicans in 2024 after being recruited in January 2024 by Macronie to enter Gabriel Attal's government as Minister of Culture, Rachida Dati has resumed her card at LR.

Ms. Dati, 59, must match her legal agenda with this electoral calendar: she was sent to trial on July 22 for corruption and influence peddling, suspected of having received €900,000 between 2010 and 2012 for consulting services with a subsidiary of the Renault-Nissan alliance, but without having actually worked, even though she was a lawyer and a member of the European Parliament. She has appealed the decision.

The precise date of the trial is expected to be set at a first hearing scheduled for September 29.

At the beginning of August, the Constitutional Council approved a new voting system for municipal elections in Paris, Lyon and Marseille, in which councillors from central town halls will now be directly elected, in addition to representatives from districts and sectors.