Lhe mayor of Souprosse, Christian Ducos, does not lack humor in the face of the situation. “We wrote to President Macron to ask him to move the elections, but we have not had a response. » A joke which perfectly sums up the embarrassment in which some Landes municipalities find themselves, due to the legislative elections which are scheduled for Sunday June 30 and July 7.
A first round and a second which fall for these cities at the same time as their annual festivals. Around fifteen, like Renung, le Frêche, Saubrigues, Cauneille, Geaune and even Ondres are concerned for the first round. Around twenty for the second round, like Benquet, Bénesse-Maremne, Gamarde-les-Bains, Habas, Saint-Justin and Tartas.
On…
Lhe mayor of Souprosse, Christian Ducos, does not lack humor in the face of the situation. “We wrote to President Macron to ask him to move the elections, but we have not had a response. » A joke which perfectly sums up the embarrassment in which some Landes municipalities find themselves, due to the legislative elections which are scheduled for Sunday June 30 and July 7.
A first round and a second which fall for these cities at the same time as their annual festivals. Around fifteen, like Renung, le Frêche, Saubrigues, Cauneille, Geaune and even Ondres are concerned for the first round. Around twenty for the second round, like Benquet, Bénesse-Maremne, Gamarde-les-Bains, Habas, Saint-Justin and Tartas.
” They were only missing that. This is the message that I sent to my colleagues as soon as the dates were announced,” continues the mayor of Souprosse (who is celebrating from June 28 to 1is July). “Obviously this is an important subject, because both require significant involvement of municipal employees. Our municipal teams are busy with very specific tasks during the holidays. We are going to call for volunteers. The same goes for elected officials, many of whom are also members of the Festival Committee. We will have to share. » A concern shared by his counterpart from Bénesse-Maremne, Jean-François Monet: “We will have to mobilize for the second round to have too many people, rather than not enough”.
“We thought about it as soon as we learned of the dissolution and the dates chosen,” says his counterpart in Cauneille. We looked, but this does not pose any organizational concerns, either for the vote or for the demonstrations. »
Changes
In some cases, there is no choice and adaptations are necessary. As in Saint-Justin (celebration from July 5 to 8). Mayor Philippe Latry had no other solution than to request a change of location of the polling station from the Landes prefecture for the second round. “Usually, it’s at the town hall which is in the heart of the village. With the party, this is not without concern. There would have been a parking problem for people coming to vote, details the chief magistrate. So we will do it at school, after having obtained prefectural authorization, where everything will be much more practical.” This will impose a constraint: municipal staff will have to wait until the end of the school day to transform the classroom into a polling station.
This is not an isolated case, other municipalities have requested changes to polling stations. “There are around thirty in the department,” reveals the press office of the Landes prefecture. As in Saubrigues, where the vote will also take place in the school’s after-school reception during the first round. “Our polling station is located in the heart of the festival, between the marquees and the rides, with no possibility of parking. It’s a bit of a construction site. Now, we must ensure publicity to inform of this change. And we are also increasing the number of employees in the slots. There will be five of us instead of four, with a dedicated person to always ensure the availability of parking spaces,” explains Benoit Darets, the mayor.
Same solution for the small town of Banos which “moved its polling station to the school canteen”. “This is to allow everyone to vote peacefully, without being bothered by the festivities,” specifies the mayor, Jean-Louis Laporte. At Frêche, it is on the library side that the polling station will be installed. In Bourdalat, the council room will be transformed into a polling station “with entrance through the school yard”.
In other cases, the programming has been adjusted. Neighbors Gers were the first to draw. This is the case in Eauze, which has partly maintained its festivals, moving its bullfighting day (and therefore its bullfight) to September 14. In Barcelonne-du-Gers, it is the Landes race which has changed slot, switching from Sunday to Saturday. “We looked at all of this so that there was as little happening on Sunday,” warns the Gers mayor, Cédric Berdoulet. This is also the case in Banos. “We are going to postpone the Landes race a little and have it leave at 6 p.m., in order to allow the elected officials, as soon as the counting is completed, to go there”, evokes the first magistrate.
“We looked at all of this so that there would be as little happening on Sunday”
An overlap which will in fact lead to the absence of policies from the different Landes racing arenas during that weekend. “It’s a place where we can easily meet them,” notes an elected official preferring to remain anonymous, “the front row will be available for other spectators.”
Profitable from participation?
“No contradiction” on the side of Gamarde-les-Bains which will vibrate for its party on the occasion of the second round. “Our rooms are free that day. We were good,” smiles the mayor, Jérôme Curutchet. He understands that “we will have to make choices” between certain events to take care of “the obligations” linked to voting.
On the Geaune side (celebrated from June 28 to 30), we take this overlap philosophically. “We are a small town, we will get there,” says Mayor Gilles Couture. The elected official even sees the good side of things: “There are going to be people, people should vote a little more. »
“There are going to be people, there should be a little more voting. »
“We will have to manage to enjoy the celebration a little and also ensure that the vote goes well,” recognizes the mayor of Saint-Justin. However, no one has planned to move the friendship pot (generally offered by municipalities during the holidays) in front of the polling station. “However, I think that this would encourage some, but that is not compatible with a polling station,” jokes the mayor of Souprosse.
Whatever happens, on June 30 and July 7, many of them will fulfill their duty as citizens while bringing the duty of celebration to its firmament!
