France’s far-right party has boosted hopes of winning the country’s second-largest city after exit polls showed a tight race in the first round of the Marseille mayoral election.

According to polling data, incumbent Socialist mayor Benoît Payan and far-right challenger Franck Allisio of the National Rally were tied with about 35.4% of the vote in Sunday’s first round.

The closely contested race in Marseille—France’s second-largest city—has become one of the most closely watched battles in the country’s nationwide municipal elections. Voters across France are electing local leaders in around 35,000 towns and cities in a vote seen as a key test ahead of the 2027 French presidential election.

The anti-immigration and eurosceptic National Rally, already the largest bloc in the French parliament, has long struggled to build strong local power bases. However, rising concerns over security and drug-related crime in Marseille have strengthened the party’s prospects in the city.

Polls indicate that security is the top concern among voters, a trend that analysts say could benefit the National Rally’s tough-on-crime platform.

In addition to Payan and Allisio, candidates from the far-left La France Insoumise and a centrist coalition also qualified for the second round. The result sets up a complex four-way runoff vote next Sunday, making the final outcome difficult to predict.

Candidates are expected to negotiate alliances or withdraw in the coming days in an attempt to consolidate support before the decisive round.

Speaking after the first-round results, Allisio urged voters to unite behind his campaign. “We call on all the women and men of Marseille—join us. Let us unite to defeat the left and the far left,” he said, pledging to restore order in the city.