On Saturday, the French politician Marie Cau made history by becoming the first openly transgender person elected as a mayor in the country’s history.
Just before the Memorial Day weekend stateside, Cau was inaugurated by the council of Tilloy-lez-Marchiennes, a small village in northeastern France near the Belgian border.
Although she told the AFP news agency that she was “not an activist,” Cau’s platform focused on sustainable agriculture, the environment, and the economy, a message that clearly resonated with others in her community. Even so, activists hailed the historic election as a major breakthrough.
“People did not elect me because I was or was not transgender, they elected a program,” Cau said, noting that the vote was values-driven, as social ties in the community have disappeared and that people wanted change. “That’s what’s interesting: when things become normal, you don’t get singled out.”
Even so, she recognizes the importance of her election and said she is looking forward to the day when electing a transgender person isn’t seen as a monumental event.
“It’s surprising that it’s surprising,” Cau told the AFP, noting that “this situation should be normal, since people vote for a team and a project.” She won the first round of election voting on March 15, but the vote wasn’t solidified and her inauguration didn’t proceed until this week, in large part because the coronavirus pandemic prompted lockdown orders.
Following Cau’s election, Marlène Schiappa, the country’s gender equality minister, tweeted her support and excitement about the result. “Trans visibility, and the fight against transphobia, also depends on exercising political and public responsibilities. Congratulations Marie Cau!” Schiappa wrote.
Cau transitioned some 15 years ago, but told the AFP that she’s never experienced overt discrimination. “It’s rare. People are considerate, despite a couple of blunders,” she said. An engineer by trade, Cau told reporters that she wasn’t one bit surprised by the election results.
Cau is one of a number of LGBTQ+ elected officials who have made history in France. From 2001 to 2014, Bertrand Delanoë served as the mayor of Paris and became one of the country’s first openly gay politicians to lead a large city, having come out a few years before his election.
While addressing her community after the election, Cau vowed to make good on her campaign promises. “My dream is to build an exemplary village, to demonstrate that normal citizens can do things that the government can’t,” she told the AFP.
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