French voters started casting ballots on Sunday (March 22) morning to elect mayors for Paris, Marseille and over 1,500 other cities and towns in votes that will test the strength of the far right and the resilience of mainstream parties ahead of next year's presidential election.

Heading nearly 35,000 municipalities - from major cities to villages with only a few dozen residents - mayors are France's most trusted elected officials.

Many won enough votes to be elected in the first round last Sunday (March 15), but tight races in France's biggest cities are going to runoff elections.

One of the key ballots will be in Marseille, the country's second-biggest city, where the second round pits the far-right National Rally (RN) against the incumbent Socialist mayor. If the RN were to win, it would be a major victory for them.

In Paris, opinion polls show victory - for the conservatives or the left - is within their margins of error.

Voting starts at 8 a.m. (0700 GMT) and ends between 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. Results will trickle in through the evening.

DESCRIPCIÓN DE IMÁGENES

PARIS, FRANCE (MARCH 22, 2026) (REUTERS - Access all)

1. PEOPLE LINING UP TO VOTE

2. BALLOT BEING DROPPED INTO BOX

3. PEOPLE INSIDE VOTING BOOTHS

4. VARIOUS OF PEOPLE DROPPING BALLOTS INTO BALLOT BOXES

5. MAN WALKING OUT OF VOTING BOOTH, WALKING TOWARDS BALLOT BOX

6. VARIOUS OF WOMAN VOTING

7. MAN WALKING OUT OF VOTING BOOTH

8. BALLOT BEING DROPPED INTO BALLOT BOX

9. MAN TAKING BALLOTS THEN WALKING TOWARDS BOOTHS

10. VOTER INSIDE VOTING BOOTH

11. VARIOUS OF PEOPLE LINING UP TO VOTE

12. WOMAN VOTING

13. VOTING BOOTHS INSIDE POLLING STATION AT PARIS' 18TH DISTRICT CITY HALL

MARSEILLE, FRANCE (MARCH 22, 2026) (REUTERS - Access all)

14. WOMAN DROPPING BALLOT INTO BALLOT BOX / SIGN READING (French): :"MARSEILLE CITY HALL"

15. BALLOT BEING DROPPED INTO BOX

16. PEOPLE LINING UP TO VOTE

17. BALLOT BEING DROPPED INTO BOX

18. BALLOTS IN BOX

19. PEOPLE INSIDE VOTING BOOTHS

20. PEOPLE VOTING

PAIRS, FRANCE (MARCH 22, 2026) (REUTERS - Access all) (MUTE)

21. EIFFEL TOWER AND BUILDINGS