mayoral

PARIS — French voters headed to the polls Sunday to elect mayors and municipal councillors across 35,000 communes in a two-round contest seen as a crucial barometer of the nation’s political mood ahead of next year’s presidential race, when centrist President Emmanuel Macron is constitutionally barred from seeking a third consecutive term. The stakes are high for Marine Le Pen’s ascendant far-right National Rally (RN), which views 2027 as its strongest chance yet to take power. While nearly 90% of France’s communes are…