French local elections: In Paris suburbs, LFI won the biggest prize, but made few gains

During the vote count in Saint-Denis, a northern suburb of Paris, on March 15, 2026. CAMILLE MILLERAND/DIVERGENCE FOR LE MONDE

On Sunday, March 15, the night of the first round of the French municipal elections, more than 100 people gathered in the city hall of Saint-Denis, the largest suburb of Paris. At around 9:30 pm, the vote count ended and Socialist Mayor Mathieu Hanotin announced the results, as is tradition. As soon as he read out that Bally Bagayoko, the candidate for La France Insoumise (LFI, radical left), had won with 50.77% of the vote, a roar erupted. With only 32.7% of the vote, Hanotin was left far behind and looked dejected as the crowd celebrated the radical left's victory in the first round and the Socialists' defeat. "Everyone hates Hanotin," they chanted.

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LFI makes unexpected breakthroughs in French municipal elections

From Sunday night onwards, LFI held up its win in Saint-Denis as proof of the success of its strategy to establish itself in working-class neighborhoods in the Paris suburbs. Saint-Denis, with nearly 150,000 residents, was also where LFI leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon achieved some of his best results in the 2022 presidential election, despite low turnout. In 2024, LFI also led there in the European elections.