French MPs have approved a bill regarding Alsace’s withdrawal from its Grand Est region – but why does Alsace want to leave, and where is it going?
Alsace’s desire to leave the Grand Est region comes from a mix of historical, cultural, political, and practical reasons.
The area itself has a complicated history of switching back and forth between France and Germany, which has left it with a lot of German cultural influences (language, food, Christmas markets) and a very particular legal status.
9 things that make Alsace different to the rest of France
But while Alsace is different, it doesn’t want to leave France – the debate is only over whether it should create its own local authority or remain part of the Grand Est region, which takes in large parts of north east France.
It was former French President François Hollande who last changed the area’s status – merging Alsace with Lorraine and Champagne-Ardenne to create Grand Est.
The 2016 reform was part of a wider restructure of French local government powers that created the 13 regions that now exist in mainland France.
The modern French regions. Credit: Mightymights/Wikimedia Commons
This decision was controversial in Alsace, where many residents felt that their regional identity was being weakened.
In response to this dissatisfaction, a later reform in 2021 created the European Collectivity of Alsace (CEA), restoring a degree of administrative autonomy and formally recognising Alsace’s distinct cultural and historical identity within France. This takes in the départements of Bas-Rhin and Haut-Rhin.
But despite this attempt at compromise, many elected representatives in Alsace have been calling for several years for the area to leave Grand Est.
Ten years after the merger of the regions, the Macronist Ensemble Pour la République group has tabled a bill in the French Assembly aimed at the “return of the Alsace region”.
What does this mean?
The bill intends to transform the current European Collectivity of Alsace, consisting of the Haut-Rhin and Bas-Rhin départements, into a local authority with a “special status” – combining the powers of both a département and a region.
It is not exactly clear how that would affect the number of départements and/or the number of regions in France due to this special status.
The current Grand Est region is made up of 10 départements, and the proposal is that the other eight remain in the region, with Haut-Rhin and Bas-Rhin at the far eastern tip breaking away to form Alsace.
Map of the Grand Est region in France. Alsace includes both the départements of the Bas-Rhin and Haut-Rhin. (Credit: Tschubby/ Wikimedia Commons)Mixed reactions
Some local leaders claim decisions are now made too far from citizens, and that a smaller, independent Alsace region would be more responsive and easier to govern.
Supporters also point to efficiency and economic reasons, arguing that separating could simplify administration and even save money by reducing layers of governance.
According to the bill’s supporters, including Alsatian MPs Brigitte Klinkert, Olivier Becht, Françoise Buffet and Charles Sitzenstuhl, the aim is to “streamline administrative management structures” and achieve “budget savings of around €80 to €100 million a year”.
But for Franck Leroy, the (independent right-wing) president of the Grand-Est Regional Council, this project, which he describes as “absurd, to say the least, does not in any way meet the expectations of our fellow citizens.”
He believes that there are greater issues in the region that need to be dealt with before this possible separation.
However, for Leroy, if the proposal is passed, “the people of Alsace will certainly be among themselves, but they will have fewer resources to develop. We must tell people the truth”.
What do the people of Alsace think?
While there is certainly a sense of regional identity and a very strong attachment to Alsace, this decision does not manifest itself in the same way for all residents.
“It’s important to preserve our identity and protect our traditions. In my family, we try to speak Alsatian whenever we can, mainly just for a laugh with the expressions, but apart from that, I don’t really care whether Alsace is part of the Grand Est or not. It doesn’t make much difference – we’ve got history on our side and the Concordat,” told Julie, a law student in Strasbourg, to French media 20 Minutes.
Like Julie, many Alsatians regularly claim to be deeply attached to their “identity”, and the merger with Lorraine and Champagne-Ardenne has been poorly received by some, who feel they are losing visibility and autonomy.
Some residents, according to various polls, want a separation, others are fine with it or remain indifferent. According to an Ifop survey conducted in 2025, “72 percent of Alsatians wanted this single Alsace authority”.
Across the rest of France people also regularly ignore the 2016 regional structure and continue to refer to the historic regions such as Picardie, Pouitou-Charente and Languedoc which, technically, no longer exist.
What happens now?
The bill was passed in the Assemblée nationale by 131 votes to 100 on April 8th, with the support of the Rassemblement National (RN) and its allies, while the centre was divided on the issue and the left opposed it.
It now needs the approval of the Senate, but the next step in its legislative journey is uncertain as the Senate agenda is currently very full.
The government also stated that it will introduce an amendment to allow residents of the Grand Est region to be consulted if the bill is adopted.
If approved, its entry into force would be postponed until the next regional elections in March 2028.
