Former minister François Rebsamen leaves Dijon town hall, after 23 years at its head

Former socialist minister François Rebsamen announced in a press release on Monday that he would relinquish the position of mayor of Dijon, which he has held since 2001, but retain that of president of the Burgundian metropolis. “When I look at the action accomplished, I consider that the time has come for me to transmit”writes the former Minister of Labor of François Hollande, aged 73, evoking a choice “long thought, responsible and assumed”. “It is to Nathalie Koenders, my first deputy since 2015, that I would like to entrust the responsibility of now assuming the role of Mayor”he adds.

The latter, aged 47, must still be approved by the municipal council on November 25 to become the first female mayor of Dijon. She had already held this position on an interim basis for a few months in 2018, when François Rebsamen was being treated for cancer. François Rebsamen will now devote himself entirely to his duties as president of the Dijon metropolis, which he has held since 2001, with a brief interruption in 2014-15.

Close to François Hollande

“I will now continue the work differently, with enthusiasm and determination, convinced of the crucial issue of ecological transition and carried by the same values ​​of unity, solidarity and social justice which have always guided my action”he says.

This former national secretary of the PS, very close to François Hollande, supported Emmanuel Macron in 2022. After leaving the socialist party, he then created the Progressive Federation, a “left-wing government movement which brings together elected officials and citizens who no longer recognized themselves in the Socialist Party”. During the legislative elections in June 2024, the Progressive Federation publicly supported François Hollande, candidate of the New Popular Front in Corrèze.