Olivier Rioult, spokesperson for Franck Allisio's campaign team and the newly elected mayor of Marseille's 11th and 12th districts, has filed an appeal with the administrative court. The representative has cited "irregular practices."

The announcement has caused quite a stir in Marseille. Less than two weeks after Benoît Payan (DVG) was elected as the mayor of France’s second-largest city, the National Rally (Rassemblement National) declared that it has filed an appeal challenging the election results.

As reported by La Provence, the appeal was submitted to the Marseille administrative court by Olivier Rioult, spokesperson for Franck Allisio and the current mayor of the 11th and 12th districts of Marseille.

The representative and his party believe that numerous „irregular practices” undermined the voting in both the first and second rounds. „Just because the campaign is over doesn’t mean we should ignore these irregularities and the suspicion of fraud. We are being consistent,” Olivier Rioult affirmed to Le Figaro.

The National Rally had consistently highlighted these issues during the campaign, indicating that they encountered them both on the ground and at polling stations. Notably, the electoral rolls contained a significant number of very elderly individuals, including those over 110 years old, and even a 120-year-old woman.

„The attendance sheets included numerous signatures that could be irregular. We had to bring all of this to the judge’s attention,” Rioult continued, referring to a list of 1,800 signatures deemed „problematic” at several polling stations in Marseille.

„We could say, ‘this is Marseille.’ We disagree with that. What is unacceptable in other French cities cannot be accepted in Marseille,” the representative insisted, dismissing any notion of political strategy. „This appeal does not pertain to a specific operation or issue; however, it allows Franck Allisio to retain all his mandates,” said a source familiar with the matter.

Olivier Rioult pointe notamment 1800 signatures «incohérentes». → https://t.co/2uEySLP9fx pic.twitter.com/xuJscAXRVK

— Le Figaro (@Le_Figaro) April 3, 2026

The National Rally candidate, who is now the leader of the city’s opposition, indeed holds multiple positions. The representative from Bouches-du-Rhône was re-elected in June 2024, securing 40.30% of the votes in the municipal elections, and has been a member of the regional council for the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur (PACA) region since 2015. Some local voices suggest that filing the appeal would enable Franck Allisio to maintain all three of his mandates for a few more months.

„In any case, a decision must be made. The vote difference is significant, and the judge needs to decide quickly,” emphasized a local source.

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