Bilaal Lookman, an 18-year-old Paris-Panthéon-Assas University law student of Sri Lankan origin, has been elected a municipal councillor in Guyancourt on the outskirts of Paris, making him one of the youngest elected officials in France.
Lookman was born in November 2007 in France to a family with roots in Mannar and Jaffna in northern Sri Lanka. He cast his own ballot for the first time in France’s municipal elections held on 15 and 22 March 2026, and was himself on the ticket as part of the outgoing mayor’s candidate list, Daily FT reported on Thursday.
His early exposure to French institutions came through internships at ages 15 and 16 in the offices of a Member of Parliament, a former Minister of Education and the mayor of Guyancourt. Those placements led to meetings with the President of Parliament, former ministers and French and foreign diplomats, and a continuing interest in public affairs. He also served on Guyancourt’s Children’s Municipal Council and volunteered with a local food aid organisation while in high school.
“It doesn’t matter where we come from or the path we’ve taken. What matters is what we choose to build together. The future is never guaranteed, but it is shaped by our choices, our efforts, and our determination. This is true in politics, just as it is in our personal lives,” Lookman said after the result.
The young councillor will balance his new mandate with his first-year law studies at Paris-Panthéon-Assas, one of France’s most prestigious public law schools. He said he wanted to use the role to draw young people and citizens closer to politics.
“It is with a strong sense of commitment and public service that I am joining the City Council. I am determined to bring young people and citizens closer to politics. People need to stop thinking that politics is pointless. There is a lot of work to be done for young people, and that is precisely why I am getting involved,” he added.
Guyancourt, a commune of around 30,000 residents in the Yvelines department west of Paris, hosts several universities and research institutes and is part of the Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines new town area. Lookman’s election follows a pattern of second-generation Sri Lankan Tamil and Muslim community members entering local politics across France and the United Kingdom in recent years.
