During 2024, Pascal Houbron, mayor (UDI) of Bihorel (Seine-Maritime), a town north of the Rouen metropolitan area, suffered from aphasia for six months. During his absence, his first assistant, Nathalie Lecordier, managed the commune. Then, on January 14, 2025, the mayor returned to his post, to which he was first elected in 2001.
But he changed again. In remarks to staff, the first-time councilor announced “that after a quarter century as city leader,” he would not be a leader on the city’s next election slate. “I hope the city continues on the path it has been following since 2001. For this, I have great confidence in my first deputy who took over as Mayor of Bihorel. During this interim period, he demonstrated that he has the qualities to do this and has the appetite to take the city’s public action,” he then assured.
Within a few months, this confidence was shattered. At the city council meeting on October 9, the mayor was accompanied by only one representative from his majority.
The rebellion began on May 2, when most of the majority group, since united in the Bihorel list, published a press release denouncing Pascal Houbron’s project to include “a list of dissidents, different from the list of his current team.” “We regret that personal ambition weakened our team and endangered our collective action,” said the city council member.
The mayor later defended himself by saying that he had “only one condition, that I be allowed to finish my mandate calmly and gradually, when others want to see the interim term extended until March 2026, and that I stay at home peacefully. There cannot be two mayors. There is me.”
17 elected officials, including 5 former deputy mayors
Condemning destabilizing maneuvers that “came close to an abuse of weakness”, he then returned to war, because “I have resumed my function and I will carry it out to the end”. But, most importantly, he finally decided to run in the next municipal elections, “to respond positively to the call of Bihorella’s young, committed citizens who came to see me to build innovative projects with me. Besides, I didn’t need to campaign. It wasn’t me who led the list of dissidents, it was them.”
Fighting continued on June 26, during a city council meeting. The list of Bihorel communes then announced its constitution with no less than 17 elected officials, “a group that now represents the majority of the town”, supporting Nathalie Lecordier. Cornered, on September 5, Pascal Houbron withdrew a delegation of five deputies (sports, culture, urban planning, finance, events) from eight deputies.
The final episode occurred on October 9. During another city council, this time in a packed room, as this confrontation attracted more and more residents, the mayor could only confirm the situation: he had only one deputy left, “having received the resignation of the other deputy on September 25 from the prefecture”.
In the minority, the first councilor also lost his delegation that night, at the request of his former friends, except for office management and burial concessions. “We have in common bankruptcy, disgrace, disgrace, disgrace and shame,” the angry mayor said.
Since then, candidates have been nominated since after Bihorel en commun, “yesterday’s opponents” made the list of “Bihorel airy” and other candidates will present themselves by name, collective citizens of Bihorel. Meanwhile, for the mayor, he has not yet detailed his vice presidential candidate and program. Therefore, the situation is expected to remain volatile at least until March 15, 2026, the day of the first round, in Bihorel. The next important date is February 26, the application deadline.
