Arras, France: Eleonore Laloux has battled all her life to be treated like others. Now the 34-year-old is waging a new campaign: to become one of the first women in France with Down syndrome to win a local council seat in this month's municipal elections.

Armed with a broad smile and a gritty determination, Laloux is campaigning for support in Arras, her home-town in northern France, talking up her ambitions for a cleaner town and improved access for disabled people. But above all, a fairer society.

"I've fought hard to live with Down syndrome. It doesn't trouble me any longer," Laloux said. "Now I am fighting for inclusion. Handicapped people have their place in society."

Down sydrome no barrier for one French candidate, Eleonore Laloux. Credit:YouTube/BrainBrand

As a young girl, Laloux's parents refused to place her in a special needs school, instilling in their daughter a self-belief that would later help her overcome bullies and secure a job as an administrator in a private hospital.