the collective of breeder Jérôme Bayle launches into the agricultural elections

The “Ultras de l’A64” collective, a figure in the agricultural anger movement, is presenting a list for the next elections to the Chamber of Agriculture of Haute-Garonne.

Media figure of the agricultural protest, Jérôme Bayle enters the field of professional elections, without putting his own name there. The “Ultras of the A64” have officially submitted a list for the next elections to the Chamber of Agriculture of Haute-Garonne, reports La Dépêche du Midi, confirming information from Ouest-France.

This collective of Occitan farmers, of which the cattle breeder is the headliner, organized the blocking of part of the A64 motorway last winter. It now comes to intervene in the local union battle.

The leader of the “Ultras de l’A64” will nevertheless not be part of the twenty or so candidates on the list submitted in Haute-Garonne.

“I want to preserve my freedom of speech and action to defend agriculture,” explained Jérôme Bayle, former member of the local section of the FNSEA which he has since left, to La Dépêche du Midi.

The collective, which has always claimed to be apolitical and non-union, advocates the creation of new water reservoirs, the installation of solar panels or even the creation of an entirely local meat sector among its proposals.

Media exposure

In the previous professional elections in 2019, the majority union alliance FNSEA and Young Farmers (JA) was divided in Haute-Garonne, contrary to the practice in the rest of French territory. The second union came out on top in the first college, that of farmers, which represents half of the seats, with 38.68% of the votes. The FNSEA took second place with 34.88% of the votes, ahead of an improbable alliance between the Peasant Confederation and the Rural Coordination which had accumulated 26.44% of the votes.

The list of “Ultras of the A64” hopes to take advantage of its media exposure to delight the local chamber of agriculture. But the path will not necessarily be easy: the list that comes first in the first college automatically wins half of the seats thanks to a majority bonus and ensures a comfortable lead over its adversaries – the FNSEA-JA alliance currently directs almost all of the chambers of agriculture. Especially since the bustling Rural Coordination is also attacking the FNSEA-JA stronghold, particularly in the South-West.

In 2019, local lists, outside of traditional unions, had however managed to establish themselves in Moselle and Martinique.