François Bayrou, newly appointed Prime Minister, faces controversy for leading the Pau municipal council while advocating for ministers and parliamentarians to hold dual mandates. He defends his decision, emphasizing the need for local connections. Current laws prevent government members from being parliamentarians, following reforms aimed at reducing mandate accumulation. Critics argue this disconnects national representatives from local issues. The ongoing debate includes calls to relax the 2014 law, which prohibits dual roles for national parliamentarians and local executives.
Just three days after taking on the role of Prime Minister, François Bayrou has found himself at the center of a heated debate. His decision to lead the municipal council in Pau, where he has served as mayor for a decade, has sparked backlash amid the ongoing crisis in Mayotte. During this council meeting, Bayrou advocated for the dual holding of mandates by ministers and parliamentarians.
“We made a mistake in deeming local and national responsibilities as incompatible. This needs to be re-evaluated,” Bayrou remarked, also noting that while government members can hold multiple roles, parliamentarians cannot. He further stated, “I envision this without additional allowances.” He encouraged future government members to maintain their local mandates, emphasizing the importance of staying connected to the community.
Bayrou’s Legal Path
François Bayrou, who has led the Modem party since 2007 and the European Democratic Party since 2004, reaffirmed his commitment to remain the mayor of Pau, a move that is legally permissible. This diverges from recent norms where newly appointed Prime Ministers would resign from local roles. While there is no explicit law forbidding this, Article 23 of the Constitution does prevent government officials from holding parliamentary positions.
On a recent segment of Franceinfo, Yaël Braun-Pivet, the President of the National Assembly, highlighted the prior constitutional reforms aimed at curbing the accumulation of mandates, noting that a nearly unanimous vote took place in July 2018. As such, a minister cannot simultaneously be a parliamentarian. Any deputies or senators who join the government must vacate their parliamentary seats, as outlined by organic law n°2009-38 of January 13, 2009.
Understanding the 2014 Organic Law
The conversation surrounding the non-accumulation of mandates is an ongoing issue. The organic law enacted on February 14, 2014, under François Hollande, prohibited individuals from serving as both national parliamentarians (deputies or senators) and local executives. This legislation aimed at refreshing the political landscape and increasing female representation in Parliament while ensuring that elected officials focus solely on their roles.
Critics, particularly from the right and center-right, argue that this separation leaves national representatives disconnected from local issues. In practice, individuals in these roles cannot hold positions such as mayor or regional council president. However, they can still participate in municipal, departmental, or regional councils without occupying executive roles. Importantly, they are limited to one local mandate alongside their parliamentary duties.
When a parliamentarian is elected to a local executive role, they must resolve any conflicts of interest within thirty days of the election results. If they fail to do so, their earlier mandate will automatically cease, as stipulated in organic law 151 of the electoral code.
Additionally, local officials are restricted to holding no more than two mandates among various council roles, including regional and municipal councilor positions.
European deputies are also bound by these restrictions. They cannot hold a national parliamentary mandate while serving in the European Parliament or maintain more than one electoral mandate among certain local and regional council roles, as per Article 6-3 of law n°77-729 of July 7, 1977.
The discussion around the non-accumulation of mandates continues to resurface, with political figures from the right and center-right advocating for a relaxation of the 2014 law. In March 2024, a proposal that aimed to permit deputies and senators to take on roles such as deputy mayors or regional vice-presidents was ultimately rejected by the assembly.