Anne Hidalgo will give up her post as mayor of Paris in 2026. But she does not imagine “for a second” that Rachida Dati will succeed her, she who will be tried six months after the election, mainly for corruption.
The Minister of Culture and the mayor of the 7th arrondissement of Paris “threatened very severe punishment”, recalled the socialist, interviewed this Thursday on RTL. “I can’t imagine for a second that Parisians would entrust their keys to someone who could be removed from office. »
Rachida Dati must appear in criminal court in September 2026 for corruption and influence peddling. he is suspected of receiving an excessive 900,000 euros from a subsidiary of the Renault-Nissan alliance when Carlos Ghosn was CEO and himself a member of the European Parliament. Accusations he denies.
“From a moral point of view, he should have abandoned his mandate long ago. When we are concerned about such a serious issue, we take our responsibility,” said Anne Hidalgo.
Rachida Dati is at the top in the latest survey
A recent Ifop poll put Rachida Dati at the top in voting intentions in the first round of municipal elections in March 2026. She is ahead of PS candidate Emmanuel Grégoire, former first deputy Anne Hidalgo with whom she is at odds, the winner of the socialist primary against mayoral candidate Rémi Féraud.
“I will vote for a candidate from the left” in March, who “will of course be Emmanuel Grégoire”, assured Anne Hidalgo, hoping for a union between the socialists and ecologists led by David Belliard. “I will support this alliance. For now, I am not involved,” said the lawmaker, who had stated before the primary that he would not support his former heir apparent in his campaign.
Pinned by the anti-corruption association Citizen Transparency for its representation expenses report, he argued that “many elected officials” also earn such compensation without “becoming the subject of controversy.”
During her 25 years in Paris city hall and 12 years as mayor, “I respected the laws of the Republic and the framework established for my mandate”, defended Anne Hidalgo, claiming to have been the subject of “permanent harassment” since her election.
