The authorities of the south of France opened a criminal case against one of the candidates of the last presidential election, Jean Lassalle, a deputy and leader of the Let’s Resist! party. He is suspected of electoral violations that could affect the outcome of the vote, radio France Bleu Béarn Bigorre reports.
During the second round of the presidential elections, on April 24, Lassalle, being at the polling station in the commune of Lourdios-Ischer (Pyrénées Atlantiques department), announced that he would abstain from voting and thereby influence the opinions of other voters, which is prohibited on election day.
The video of his words went viral on social media. On Wednesday, April 27, the constitutional council annulled all the results of the second round elections in the commune of Lourgios Ishere. Lassalle is reported to have been a native of this commune and was its mayor for 40 years.
On Thursday, April 28, the prosecutor of the city of Pau (the administrative center of the Atlantic Pyrenees) decided to initiate a criminal case against the 66-year-old politician. According to the law, Lassalle faces a fine of 15,000 euros, up to a year in prison, as well as deprivation of a parliamentary mandate and loss of voting rights. During the first round of the presidential elections in France, Lassalle won 3.13% of the vote.