![À Paris, la tension était palpable mercredi soir à l’occasion du premier et seul débat organisé entre les trois finalistes. [Bertrand GUAY / AFP]](/cdn-cgi/image/onerror=redirect,width=640,height=640,format=webp/https://storage.googleapis.com/uploads.mongoosehq.com/url/media/114813074/58a14c03daaf1c9255eae3616827d42d75e7b943121e36afc6ace24df7c7b2a5)
![Rachida Dati, candidate LR aux minicipales de Paris. [Europe 1]](/cdn-cgi/image/onerror=redirect,width=640,height=640,format=webp/https://storage.googleapis.com/uploads.mongoosehq.com/url/media/114475204/aa02a2de85256f276b98bacc8f6650312599d5acfcaef99e416c4e0d9e9128bd)
Overview
- Final slates are now fixed for Sunday’s second round in 1,580 communes, formally kicking off the nationwide runoffs.
- In Paris, a three-hour BFMTV debate brought together Emmanuel Grégoire, Rachida Dati and Sophia Chikirou after a merger with Pierre‑Yves Bournazel’s list and Sarah Knafo’s withdrawal strengthened Dati’s position.
- Grégoire alleged that President Emmanuel Macron intervened to secure Knafo’s exit, a charge immediately denied by the president’s entourage and by Macron himself.
- In Marseille, LFI’s Sébastien Delogu withdrew to back Socialist mayor Benoît Payan, complicating RN candidate Franck Allisio’s path as LR’s Martine Vassal stays in the race.
- In Bordeaux, Philippe Dessertine ultimately did not submit a list, a withdrawal reported to benefit macronist Thomas Cazenave against Green incumbent Pierre Hurmic, while PS‑LFI alliances in several cities continue to provoke internal rifts and the RN seeks openings where no republican front holds.