Delanoe, the capital's first left-wing mayor since the 1871 Paris Commune, is now one of the leading figures in the Socialist Party after former Prime Minister Lionel Jospin suffered a crushing defeat in the presidential election this spring.

He was stabbed by a deranged man in the stomach at an all-night party at City Hall early Sunday, inflicting a small wound that was not life-threatening, city officials and police said.

A Socialist and homosexual elected mayor last year, Delanoe was moving through a crowd in a gilded salon when a 39-year-old man pounced on him at 2:30 a.m., they said.

The mayor had opened City Hall to visitors as part of the "Nuit Blanche" (Sleepless Night) festival, when many public buildings and museums were open all night for music and shows.

During the summer, Delanoe's "Paris Plage" (Paris Beach) festival, which brought sand, potted palms and beach sports to the highway along the Seine River, was a big hit with city residents.

But Delanoe, a soft-spoken man who governs with the environmentalist Greens and wants to make the city more livable, has also angered taxi drivers and some small businessmen by setting aside bus lanes to cut down traffic congestion.

Delano? publicly revealed his homosexuality in a television interview in 1998.

In March 2001 Paris voters chose him as their first left-wing (Socialist) mayor in 130 years.

The suspect, Azedine Berkane, 39, remained in custody Monday and was to undergo a second psychiatric exam. He confessed and said he does not like politicians or homosexuals, police said.