"During this campaign, we listened a great deal. Now it is time to act."

Article written by Ewan Pétris, Le Petit Journal Londres

"My role is to act as the link between what is happening in Manchester, Bristol, Birmingham, Leeds, Cardiff or Brighton and the decisions taken in Paris."

Patricia Connell is one of the central figures in the representation of French citizens in the United Kingdom. Elected as a Councillor for French Citizens Abroad in London at the head of the list "Ensemble! For all French citizens in the United Kingdom", she has for several years been an active political voice for the French community on this side of the Channel.

Deeply involved in associative and consular life, she also sits in the Assembly of French Citizens Abroad, where she defends the interests of expatriates on subjects such as education, administrative procedures and social protection.

What is the main lesson you draw from this vote?

Nobody could have predicted the outcome of this election. With ten lists in the running, the balance was extremely fragile and a matter of a few dozen votes could have tipped a seat either way. The results could have been very different. I take away three things above all.

First, voters placed their trust in a team that had demonstrated its ability to deliver results. Second, they endorsed our choice to bring in fresh faces. Our list secured three Councillors for French Citizens Abroad and three consular delegates. Of these six elected representatives, five are entirely new. It was a deliberate gamble: combining the experience gained over the past twelve years with new skills, fresh energy and new perspectives.

Finally, unlike many campaigns, we did not start by writing a manifesto. We started by asking a question: what are your problems, your concerns, your expectations? Nearly 3,000 French citizens in the United Kingdom responded. More than 800 took the time to leave us detailed comments. Our programme grew out of that listening process.

What will your priority issues be over the coming months?

Voters endorsed a very clear roadmap: modernise, humanise and anticipate.

Modernising means continuing the transformation of consular services so that they are more accessible, simpler and more efficient. This includes streamlining administrative procedures, as well as making consular outreach visits better organised and more predictable for French citizens living far from London.

Humanising means never losing sight of the fact that before being a case file, every French citizen is a person. We will continue to stand up for families, students, entrepreneurs and retirees, but also for the most vulnerable: isolated elderly people, people living with disabilities, families in difficulty, and French citizens facing crisis situations.

Anticipating means preparing for the future rather than being caught off guard by change. Brexit profoundly transformed the lives of many French citizens in the United Kingdom. We learned that one should never wait for a crisis before acting.

This also applies to new technologies. I am convinced that French citizens abroad could become a genuine laboratory for innovation in the public services of tomorrow. Artificial intelligence can help us to better inform, better guide and better support our fellow citizens — provided it always remains at the service of the human being.

Finally, we will continue to press for the necessary reforms with parliamentarians, the government and the administration, so that the realities experienced by French citizens abroad are better taken into account in national decision-making.

Voter turnout remains relatively low. How do you account for this?

I am of course mindful of participation levels, but I am above all concerned about those who wanted to vote and were unable to do so. We need to look carefully at the difficulties encountered during the electronic voting process. We launched a questionnaire to understand precisely what happened. Within just a few days, we had already received several hundred responses.

The initial feedback shows that some voters never received their login credentials or passwords. Others encountered technical difficulties. Some also told us they believed that a certified digital identity was required in order to vote online and did not take the process any further. If this is confirmed, it also raises the question of the clarity of the information provided to voters.

We will analyse this feedback rigorously and pass it on to the administration.

Electronic voting is essential for French citizens abroad. But it must be something that everyone can use simply and with confidence. This is all the more important as we are entering a major electoral period with the elections to the Assembly of French Citizens Abroad, the senatorial elections and then the national elections of 2027.

How do you envisage working with the other elected representatives in the constituency, including those from other lists?

Very simply: in the interests of French citizens in the United Kingdom. The next Consular Council will be very different from the one we have known until now, since six of the nine elected councillors have never before sat on a Consular Council. But French citizens do not expect partisan squabbling from us. They expect results.

I have never believed that a good idea becomes a bad one simply because it comes from a different political persuasion. Over recent years, we have achieved concrete progress by working with parliamentarians, successive governments, the consular administration, associations and elected representatives from across the political spectrum.

I will continue in that same spirit. My role is to act as the link between what is happening on the ground in the United Kingdom and the decisions taken in Paris. The coming weeks will be important, with the election of the Chair of the Consular Council followed by the elections to the Assembly of French Citizens Abroad.

What message would you like to address to French citizens in the United Kingdom?

First and foremost, thank you.

Thank you to the 4,075 voters who placed their trust in us. Thank you also to the very many people who rallied to our side throughout this campaign. Some were candidates, others were not. Many gave their time, their energy and their enthusiasm. This victory is theirs too. I am particularly pleased to see a new generation of elected representatives coming through. Voters have shown that it is possible to combine experience with renewal.

I also wish to congratulate all the consular councillors and delegates who have been elected. Voters have made their choice. It is now for us to live up to the trust they have placed in us.

This election is not a finishing line — it is a new starting point. Voters have entrusted us with a mission: to modernise, humanise and anticipate. During this campaign, we listened a great deal. Now it is time to act."