It's a first ! Marie Cau, a 55-year-old transgender woman, has just been elected mayor of Tilloy-lez-Marchiennes, a small village in the North of France.
This Saturday, May 23, a transgender woman was elected mayor of her commune by the municipal council of the village Tilloy-lez-Marchiennes, in the North of France, composed only of members of her list. News that delights the LGBTQ + community, especially Stéphanie Nicot, co-founder of the National Transgender Association (ANT). The activist ensures that Marie Cau, 55, is aware of her "the first transgender person elected mayor in France ". Stéphanie Nicot nevertheless admits that "people could pass under the radars, not to make it public ".
The 55-year-old engineer was elected with 14 votes and a void vote. In the March 15 poll, the candidates on its list obtained between 63.5 and 73.1% of the vote, the voter turnout being 67.9%. Marie Cau thought it was"a good score during the Covid-19 period". However, she said she was not surprised by the result since "the list embodied a desire for change".
The mayor has started a transition "progressive" for about 15 years and is "completely female for about five years". If she has not yet changed marital status, she intends to do so soon "to avoid red tape". "I didn't 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. Indeed, since 2016, the change of marital status has been simpler for transgender people. Medical documents are no longer required, but the person still has to go to court to obtain them.
Marie Cau does not qualify as an activist, she simply wants to focus on the position she has been given. "Exactly, 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. Indeed, Stéphanie Nicot ensures that "this election shows that even if France is far behind on all questions relating to minorities, our fellow citizens are more and more progressive "choosing their elected"considering the value of individuals, regardless of their gender identity. "
Marie Cau, mother of three, has lived in Tilloy-lez-Marchiennes for twenty years. She defends "a model based on sustainable development, the local economy and short circuits, social and better living together".
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