France, Feb. 26 -- Dati said on Wednesday evening that she had submitted her resignation to President Emmanuel Macron less than three weeks before the first round of voting on 15 March.

"Paris is the commitment of a lifetime for me. I have the energy, determination and resolve needed to transform the city and meet the challenges ahead," she said in a statement.

In an interview with BFMTV, she said the coming weeks, "will be decisive for Paris and for my candidacy. The fight of my life is Paris", insisting that she is "going to change Paris and the lives of Parisians".

The conservative politician, who faces corruption charges and is due to stand trial in the autumn, is backed by the conservative Les Republicains and centrist MoDem parti...