Nice-Premium: We last left Votons.info in the heart of the presidential campaign. Now we meet again during the municipal election campaign. Was this project born immediately the day after Nicolas Sarkozy’s election?
Romain David: No, right after Nicolas Sarkozy’s victory, we launched a political observatory that allows comparing the President’s promises to his actions (www.observatoire-politique.fr).
However, the municipal project follows in the footsteps of votons.info from the presidential election. After the success of our website last year, we wanted to repeat the experience for local elections. It’s a real challenge to further sensitize voters to the candidates’ ideas.
NP: 36,000 communes, 5 or 6 times more lists. How do you effectively cover the municipal elections?
RD: We quickly realized that the only way to broadly cover this event was to have the candidates themselves enter their programs on the site.
We believe the candidates will be interested because, in addition to the program comparison service offered to their voters, they benefit from a recognized web platform to broadcast their campaign proposals.
For Internet users, many services have been added to the first version of votons.info, such as the ranking of French communes or the political quiz to discover your political trends in your commune.
NP: For now, in Nice, only Jacques Peyrat’s program is registered on votons.info. When will others appear?
RD: Christian Estrosi’s program is now online. But again, it’s the candidates who decide whether or not they appear on our site. However, I can tell you that in the first week of www.votons.info’s existence, many candidates have already registered.
We hope that Patrick Allemand will soon list their program on votons.info.
(Note: interview conducted on Sunday. Since then, Hervé Caël has entered his program on votons.info. Others will do so gradually.)
NP: With your external perspective, how do you perceive this municipal election and the stakes involved?
RD: This election allows voters to express themselves on local issues. Not all lists are attached to a political party, especially in small communes. Therefore, consulting the different programs is essential to make an informed political choice.
As for the stakes, they are both local and national. This election is, of course, fundamental for each of the 36,000 communes in France, but it can also be seen as the first assessment of Nicolas Sarkozy.
NP: Still with the same perspective, how do you perceive the municipal election in Nice?
RD: The municipal campaign in Nice is interesting as there are two right-wing and two left-wing candidates competing. Nice is a typical example of a city where voters must decide based on the programs of the different candidates and not on their affiliation to any particular camp.
