Three weeks before municipal elections, Rachida Dati announced her resignation from the Culture Ministry to focus on her Paris mayoral candidacy. Appointed in January 2024, she submitted her letter to Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday, February 25, 2026. The president thanked her for her work and encouraged her electoral campaign.
Rachida Dati, mayor of Paris's 7th arrondissement and candidate in the March 15 and 22, 2026 municipal elections, left the government on Wednesday, February 25, after two years at the Ministry of Culture. Appointed unexpectedly in January 2024, she had long announced her intention to resign before the vote, but her departure came late, under pressure from Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu.
On BFM-TV, she stated: « I submitted my resignation to the President of the Republic this morning. I have been very happy at the Ministry of Culture, but the fight of my life is Paris. » The Élysée confirmed that Macron thanked her for « the useful action she has deployed for the French over the past two years » and sent « all his encouragement in the fight she is leading ».
Her record includes strengthening culture in rural areas and protecting heritage, despite a budget cut of 173.4 million euros from a 3.7 billion budget. She advocated for an audiovisual public reform uniting France Télévisions, Radio France, and the Institut national de l'audiovisuel, which did not materialize. Her tenure was marked by crises at the Louvre, including a jewel theft and staff strikes.
Before leaving, Dati finalized the Louvre's reorganization, appointing Christophe Leribault as its head. Catherine Pégard, Macron's cultural advisor, is tipped to succeed her. In the Paris campaign, Dati faces Sarah Knafo (Reconquête) on the right and Pierre-Yves Bournazel (Horizons-Renaissance) on the left, but a recent Ifop poll positions her as the frontrunner in several scenarios.
Édouard Philippe, a supporter of uniting the right and center, reaffirmed his call for a rally to achieve alternation in Paris.
