police

Public Safety Concerns Dominate Paris Mayoral Race

PARIS (AP) — As Parisians prepare to head to the polls on March 15, with a potential runoff on March 22, concerns over public safety have risen to the forefront of the mayoral race. An IFOP-Fiducial opinion poll published earlier this month revealed that security is now the number one concern for voters.

The heightened anxiety comes despite official statistics indicating that some types of crime are actually decreasing. According to figures released by the interior ministry for 2025, robbery and violent thefts continue to decline in the capital. However, reported incidents of sexual assault and violence are in line with national trends.

Candidates across the political spectrum are responding to public unease with pledges to bolster policing. Right-wing candidates, including former Culture Minister Rachida Dati, are advocating for a significant expansion of video surveillance and an increased police presence. Dati, according to recent polling, is currently favored in potential head-to-head matchups against other candidates.

The debate over how to address safety concerns is also fueling discussion about the role and size of Paris’s municipal police force, created in 2021 by outgoing Socialist Mayor Anne Hidalgo. Currently numbering around 2,400 officers, the force primarily handles minor infractions like traffic violations and public disturbances. They lack the authority to conduct criminal investigations or make arrests independently.

Despite these limitations, the number of municipal police officers across France has increased dramatically in recent years, rising 40 percent between 2013 and 2023.

Candidates have proposed varying levels of expansion. Far-right candidate Sarah Knafo has called for quadrupling the force to 8,000 officers, while Dati and Pierre-Yves Bournazel propose 5,000 and 6,000 respectively. Even on the left, candidates like Emmanuel Grégoire and Sophia Chikirou support increasing the force, with a focus on improved training in responding to violence against women and sexual assault.

However, experts question the effectiveness of simply increasing police numbers or surveillance. Dimitri Coste, a PhD candidate researching the capital’s municipal police, notes that the growth of these forces doesn’t necessarily correlate with crime rates. “Since the 1980s…municipal police forces have been growing steadily – quite independently of crime statistics,” he said.

Similarly, researchers like Guillaume Gormand at Sciences Po Grenoble, argue that surveillance cameras have no deterrent effect on crime, and a 2021 study by the Research Centre of the National Gendarmerie Officers’ School found that camera footage is only useful in a small percentage of investigations.

The discussion also extends to equipping the municipal police with firearms. While most of France has seen an increase in armed local officers, Paris remains a notable exception. Candidates are sharply divided on the issue, with right-wing candidates favoring arming officers and left-wing candidates opposing the move.

The race for Paris’s mayor is unfolding against a backdrop of broader anxieties about security in France, and the outcome will likely reflect the priorities of a concerned electorate. While the mayor’s office has limited direct control over major crime fighting – which falls under the purview of the national police and interior ministry – the next mayor will play a key role in shaping the city’s approach to public safety.