Justice has just canceled this Friday, the municipal election in Bondy. The current mayor has not yet reacted.
The Montreuil Administrative Court canceled this Friday the municipal election in Bondy (Seine-Saint-Denis), won with 64 votes in advance by Stephen Hervé (LR) against the outgoing mayor Sylvine Thomassin (PS), who then contested.
“The electoral operations which took place on March 15 and June 28, 2020 (…) are canceled”, the court noted in a decision consulted by AFP.
At the end of the second round, Stephan Hervé was elected mayor with 50.36% of the votes cast against 49.63% for his socialist opponent: only 64 votes separated the two candidates.
An “irregular” election?
The former socialist mayor of this popular city of about 53,000 inhabitants and historically anchored on the left is contesting an “irregular” election.
Sylvine Thomassin criticizes in particular the list of Stephen Hervé (LR) the distribution of a leaflet the days preceding the poll, questioning his probity and accusing him of nepotism.
Various media had taken up an article published in The Parisian dating from June 25, mentioning the opening of a preliminary investigation for illegal taking of interests against Sylvie Thomassin. But some of them had truncated the article or highlighted the elements against it, pointed out the administrative court.
“Election propaganda”
This dissemination was “a new element of electoral propaganda, moreover particularly serious and sensitive”, he said.
However, “the towing and massive display of these media, on a date that did not allow the candidate to respond usefully to this new element of the electoral controversy relating to her personal integrity, were likely (…) to distort the results of the ballot, ”he finally concludes.
“The election was stolen from the Bondynois, that’s what mobilizes me”, reacted to AFP Sylvine Thomassin, denouncing “a system set up to cheat” which has also materialized, according to her, by false proxies.
The mayor can appeal this decision to the Council of State. Contacted, he was not immediately reachable.
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