A transgender woman was elected Saturday morning mayor of Tilloy-lez-Marchiennes (North), a village of 550 inhabitants, by the municipal council composed only of members of her list, she announced confirming information from the Voice of the North.

Marie Cau, 55, “is to my knowledge the first transgender person elected mayor in France,” said Stéphanie Nicot, co-founder of the National Transgender Association (ANT), however, adding that “people have been able to pass under the radars, don’t make this public. “

Engineer, holder of a diploma of agricultural technician, of a BTS Horticultural and passed by the army before “reconverting in data processing”, Marie Cau was elected with 14 votes and a null vote. During the March 15 poll, the candidates on its list obtained between 63.5 and 73.1% of the vote, the voter turnout standing at 67.9%.

“The list embodied a desire for change”

“It’s a good score during the Covid-19 period!” “, Rejoices the elected official,” not at all surprised, since the list embodied a desire for change “. “Completely a woman for about five years”, after a “gradual” transition for fifteen years, Marie Cau has “not yet changed marital status” but intends to do so soon, “to avoid red tape.”

“I did not have to change my first name because Marie is my third name by birth and I have been using it fluently for two years as the Civil Code allows me,” she explains. Since 2016, the change of marital status has been facilitated for transgender people, who no longer have to justify it with medical documents but still have to go to court to obtain it.

“They elected a program”

“I am not an activist,” says the city councilor, wishing to remain discreet and focus on municipal action. “Precisely, people did not elect me because I was transgender or against, they elected a program. That’s what’s interesting: when things get normal, you don’t get pointed, ”she says.

Inhabitant of the village for twenty years, mother of three children and defending “a model based on sustainable development, the local economy and short circuits, social and better living together”, she will combine her functions as mayor with her business of “IT consulting”.

For activist Stéphanie Nicot, “this election shows that, even if France is far behind on all questions relating to minorities, our fellow citizens are more and more progressive” and that they choose their elected representatives “by considering the value of individuals, regardless of their gender identity ”.