Right-Wing Victories in Toulouse and Foix Mark Shift in French Local Elections

Jean-Luc Moudenc has secured re-election as mayor of Toulouse, leading his right-leaning Protégons l’avenir de Toulouse coalition to 53.87% of the vote in the second round against François Piquemal of La France Insoumise at 46.13%. The victory ensures his list's majority on the city council and extends his tenure over France's fourth-largest city, which he has governed since 2014. A former prominent member of the conservative Les Républicains—fourth in these elections—Moudenc consolidated moderate right support amid fragmented left-wing opposition from Piquemal and the Parti Socialiste's François Briançon.

In Foix, capital of Ariège, centrist Jérôme Matéos of L’Autre choix pour Foix broke 60 years of socialist leadership by defeating incumbent Marine Bordes by nine votes. Matéos took 1,726 votes (42.82%) and 21 council seats, while Bordes's left-wing coalition earned 1,717 votes (42.59%) and six seats. Another left candidate, Alexandre Besson, placed third.

Communes in Ariège close to Andorra largely retained their incumbents, who ran unopposed on local single-list tickets and won in the first round. These include Arnaud Diaz in L'Hospitalet-près-l'Andorre, Jean-Pierre Sicre in Merens-les-Vals, and Alain Sutra in Tarascon-sur-Ariège. Ax-les-Thermes saw a change as Alain Pibouleau succeeded Dominique Fourcade—who opted not to run—with a five-vote margin over Stéphane Andrieux.

In the Eastern Pyrenees, Porté-Puymorens re-elected Anne Barral of La Voix des Portéens unopposed in the first round, while Aude Vivès's list claimed Prades with 51.98% in the second round, securing a council majority. Perpignan went to Rassemblement National's Louis Aliot in the first round after surpassing 50% of votes.

The outcomes align with a national shift toward right and centre-right candidates, though the Parti Socialiste held major cities like Paris, Lyon, Marseille, Rennes, Strasbourg, and Montpellier. President Macron's Renaissance party took only Bordeaux among large cities, while the far right gained Perpignan and minor towns but no key regional capitals. Left-wing divisions between the PS, greens, and La France Insoumise curbed broader gains.