# Regional Council of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté

The Regional Council of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté (French: Conseil régional de Bourgogne-Franche-Comté) is the deliberative assembly of the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté. Marie-Guite Dufay of the Socialist Party (PS) is the current president of the regional council, elected on 4 January 2016, following the regional elections on 6 and 13 December 2015.

## History

The regional council of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté was created by the act on the delimitation of regions, regional and departmental elections and amending the electoral calendar of 16 January 2015, which went into effect on 1 January 2016 and merged the regional councils of Burgundy and Franche-Comté, consisting of 57 and 43 regional councillors, respectively, into a single body with 100 regional councillors, following regional elections on 6 and 13 December 2015.

## Seat

On 24 June 2016, the members of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté regional council voted in favor of a proposal by Marie-Guite Dufay, president of the regional council, to designate Dijon as the prefecture of the newly unified region and agreed to select the Hôtel de Région at 4 square Castan in Besançon as the seat of the regional council. The previous seat of the regional council of Burgundy, located at 17 boulevard de la Trémouille in Dijon, became the meeting place of assemblies of the regional council. The plan was approved with 79 votes in favor, 18 votes against, and 3 abstentions.

## Election results
### 2015 regional election

The current regional council was elected in regional elections on 6 and 13 December 2015, with the list of Marie-Guite Dufay consisting of the Socialist Party (PS), the Radical Party of the Left (PRG), and Cap21 securing an absolute majority of 51 seats.
Seats :
| Leader | Leader | List | Votes | % | Votes | % | Seats | % |
| | Sophie Montel | FN | 303,143 | 31.48 | 376,913 | 32.44 | 24 | 24.00 |
| | François Sauvadet | UDI–LR | 231,069 | 24.00 | 382,216 | 32.89 | 25 | 25.00 |
| | Marie-Guite Dufay | PS–PRG–Cap21 | 221,376 | 22.99 | 402,916 | 34.67 | 51 | 51.00 |
| | Maxime Thiébaut | DLF | 49,802 | 5.17 | | | | |
| | Nathalie Vermorel | FG | 44,471 | 4.62 | | | | |
| | Cécile Prudhomme | EELV | 37,707 | 3.92 | | | | |
| | Christophe Grudler | MoDem | 31,431 | 3.26 | | | | |
| | Julien Gonzalez | AEI | 20,616 | 2.14 | | | | |
| | Claire Rocher | LO | 14,518 | 1.51 | | | | |
| | Charles-Henri Gallois | UPR | 8,835 | 0.92 | | | | |
| Total | Total | Total | 962,968 | 100.00 | 1,162,045 | 100.00 | 100 | 100.00 |
| Valid votes | Valid votes | Valid votes | 962,968 | 95.38 | 1,162,045 | 95.18 | | |
| Blank votes | Blank votes | Blank votes | 27,341 | 2.71 | 28,761 | 2.36 | | |
| Null votes | Null votes | Null votes | 19,252 | 1.91 | 30,056 | 2.46 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,009,561 | 50.56 | 1,220,862 | 61.15 | | |
| Abstentions | Abstentions | Abstentions | 987,118 | 49.44 | 775,714 | 38.85 | | |
| Registered voters | Registered voters | Registered voters | 1,996,679 | | 1,996,576 | | | |
| Source: Ministry of the Interior, Le Monde (parties) |||||||||

## Composition
### Political groups

The regional council currently consists of four political groups.
| Political group | Members | Parties |
| My Region by heart | 41 | PS, PRG, DVG |
| Union of the Republicans of the Right and the Centre | 18 | LR, DLF, DVD |
| National Rally | 18 | RN |
| Ecologists and solidarity | 8 | EÉLV |
| Communists and Republicans | 8 | PCF |
| Group of progressive representatives | 7 | LREM |

## Executive
### Presidents

On 4 January 2016, Marie-Guite Dufay of the Socialist Party (PS), who presided over the regional council of Franche-Comté before its merger, was elected president of the regional council. Despite the fact the left held a majority, Dufay was not elected in the first round of the ballot, securing only 49 votes against Sophie Montel with 24 votes and 27 blank votes (the right having decided not to present a candidate), because two members of the Radical Party of the Left (PRG) withheld their support for Dufay in the first round in order to secure vice presidencies. She was subsequently elected with 51 votes in a second ballot.
| Candidate | Party | Party | First round | First round | Second round | Second round |
| Candidate | Party | Party | Votes | % | Votes | % |
| Marie-Guite Dufay | | PS | 49 | 49.00 | 51 | 51.00 |
| Sophie Montel | | FN | 24 | 24.00 | 24 | 24.00 |
| Votes | Votes | Votes | 100 | 100.00 | 100 | 100.00 |
| Blank and null votes | Blank and null votes | Blank and null votes | 27 | 27.00 | 25 | 25.00 |
| Valid votes | Valid votes | Valid votes | 73 | 73.00 | 75 | 75.00 |

### Vice presidents

In addition to the president, the executive of the regional council also includes 15 vice presidents, as well as regional councillors serving as advisers on certain policy areas.
| Number | Regional councillor | Group | Delegate for | Department |
| 1st vice president | Michel Neugnot | PS | Finance, human resources, modernization of the administration, transport, travel and intermodal transport | Côte-d'Or |
| 2nd vice president | Laurence Fluttaz | PS | Culture and heritage | Saône-et-Loire |
| 3rd vice president | Eric Houlley | PS | Territorial cohesion and parks | Haute-Saône |
| 4th vice president | Frédérique Colas | PS | Ecological transition and the environment | Yonne |
| 5th vice president | Patrick Molinoz | PS | Youth, associative life, laïcité, innovation and digital development of territories | Côte-d'Or |
| 6th vice president | Maude Clavequin | PS | Higher education, research and university, and evaluation | Territoire de Belfort |
| 7th vice president | Jean-Claude Lagrange | PS | Economic development, new growth and employment | Saône-et-Loire |
| 8th vice president | Océane Charret-Godard | PS | Continuing education, economic change, territorial social dialogue and guidance | Côte-d'Or |
| 9th vice president | Sylvain Mathieu | PS | Wood, forest and mountain | Nièvre |
| 10th vice president | Laëtitia Martinez | PS | Sport, equality and citizenship | Saône-et-Loire |
| 11th vice president | Patrick Ayache | PS | European and international action, the planning contract, attractiveness, tourism and export | Doubs |
| 12th vice president | Sophie Fonquernie | PS | Agriculture, viticulture and agribusiness | Doubs |
| 13th vice president | Stéphane Guiguet | PS | Lycées and apprenticeships | Saône-et-Loire |
| 14th vice president | Valérie Depierre | PS | Health and social facilities, disabled people | Jura |
| 15th vice president | Denis Hameau | PS | Social and solidarity economy | Côte-d'Or |

## Committees

The regional council includes 5 thematic committees responsible for examining files on policy areas and submitting their deliberations to the vote of the 33-member standing committee or a plenary session.
| Committee | President | Group | Department |
| Finance, citizenship and evaluation of public policies, European funds, planning contract, human resources, general administration and communication | Alain Joyandet | LR–UDI | Haute-Saône |
| Economic development for employment, social and solidarity economy, agriculture, wood, forestry, tourism | Nathalie Leblanc | PS | Saône-et-Loire |
| Apprenticeship and vocational training, health and social, lycées, higher education, research | Muriel Verges-Caullet | PS | Yonne |
| Development of territories, transport, travel, intermodal transport, ecology, energy, health, digital infrastructure, mountains, parks | Jacqueline Ferrari | PS | Jura |
| Culture, international relations, sport, youth and associative life, laïcité, fight against discrimination, gender equality | Pascale Massicot | PS | Nièvre |