French Senate rejects constitutional reform that would give Corsica autonomy

The Senate rejected the reform on Monday, Oct 26, after rewriting the text the National Assembly had passed in June.

There cannot be a kind of double popular sovereignty, with a Corsican law saying one thing and a French law saying another.

— Bruno Retailleau, Les Républicains leader

Senators led by the right refused to write an “island community” into the constitution and cut back the powers the reform gave Corsica. Autonomist senator Paul Toussaint Parigi announced his camp was withdrawing from the Beauvau process, the talks meant to lead to autonomy for the island, and walked out.

What's next

A constitutional reform needs the same text from both chambers, then three-fifths of parliamentarians in Congress, so passage before the 2027 presidential election looks very unlikely. Minister Françoise Gatel said the government would keep talking and contact Corsican officials on Tuesday.