“The great electors were not mistaken, they naturally chose from their political family, and they were right,” proudly declared Christian Estrosi.
The UMP Alpes-Maritimes Ensemble list led by the mayor of Grasse, Jean-Pierre Leleux, obtained 3 seats with 48.01% of the votes cast, amounting to 856 votes from the great electors. On the same list, Colette Giudicelli, deputy mayor of Menton, came in second position, and Louis Nègre, mayor of Cagnes-sur-Mer, took third place. “It is pure happiness. I was elected for the first time 25 years ago, it’s a path that honors me; I am flattered and very happy,” declared J-P Leleux, moved to tears after the election.
The other UMP list, Mer et Montagne, led by the mayor of Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, René Vestri, obtained 1 seat with 18.35% of the votes, totaling 328 votes. “I am very happy; it is the culmination of thirty years of political action in service of my community. I think of all that I have accomplished… I have a thought for all those who trusted me; these are people who know us. An election is always a moment of hope,” affirmed the senator. During his term, he will attempt to defend the environment and fight injustices along the coastline. He also plans to lead a fight against the wealth tax.
As for the Socialist Party, it clinched the fifth seat with the list led by Marc Daunis, mayor of Valbonne: Alpes-Maritimes Solidaires. 254 great electors voted in his favor, representing 14.21% of the votes. “The important thing is the message that was conveyed tonight. It has a capacity for gathering,” declared M. Daunis.
For Patrick Allemand, leader of the socialists in the department, “It is great happiness; it is the first time in a long time that we have a senator in the department. It is an immense satisfaction for us, but also for the people of the department who were deprived of a left-wing representative. This will allow bringing a different vision to parliament than that of Mr. Estrosi.”
Finally, the outgoing senator, Pierre Laffitte, head of the list from the independent Radical Party, who was seeking a third term, is defeated, reaching only the fourth place with 9.18% of the votes cast, amounting to 164 votes.
