Catherine Trautmann announces candidacy for Strasbourg municipal elections
Former Socialist mayor of Strasbourg, Catherine Trautmann, announced on Friday, October 10, her candidacy for the upcoming March municipal elections. At 74 years old, she aims to restore a city she sees as downgraded by the current term. She will face the outgoing Green mayor and other rivals.
Catherine Trautmann, who served as Strasbourg's Socialist mayor from 1989 to 1997 and then from 2000 to 2001, made her announcement at a press conference in front of the city's train station. "By respect for the women and men of Strasbourg and by love for my city, I commit today to being a candidate in the municipal elections," she stated.
The former Culture Minister (1997-2000) and Member of the European Parliament (1989-1997 and 2004-2014) said she had been "encouraged, solicited, and sometimes even urged" by residents to take responsibility. In 2020, she received 23.33% of the votes in the second round, finishing third.
Trautmann criticizes the term of current mayor Jeanne Barseghian (The Ecologists), stating that Strasbourg has "lost its place" due to governance that has "divided, deconstructed, destabilized, and downgraded" the city. If elected, her term would be "a term of repair" to regain "financial margins" and "appease the city."
She rejects any alliances: "the only alliance is with the people of Strasbourg." Her team will be "open," combining "experience and competence" with the "energy and creativity" of younger generations. At 74, she describes herself as in "extra time" but in good health.
Her competitors include Barseghian, centrist Pierre Jakubowicz (Horizons), and Jean-Philippe Vetter (LR). Questioned by AFP, Barseghian called Trautmann an "extremely virulent" opponent who has "moved much closer to the right," leaving it to the Socialists to choose between unity and opposition.