ELECTIONS
In contrast to the plurality systems in the United States and Britain, the French party system encourages several parties to exist. However, in comparison to systems with proportional representation, it penalizes small parties, and does not allow them as much representation in parliament. The French two-round majority system is a compromise between plurality and proportional representation that provides much needed stability, but still allows for the wide range of ideological beliefs that citizens hold.
Three types of elections insure popular political participation in France:
 |
Referendum - The old Napoleonic use of a popular vote to extend the legitimacy of government was revived by Charles De Gaulle in the 1958 Constitution. Between 1958 and 1972, the French electorate voted six times on a referendum, or a political issue. For example, in 1958 the voters ratified the new constitution through a referendum. Later, voters endorsed a constitutional amendment to elect the president by direct popular suffrage. In 1972, voters supported admission of Great Britain to the Common Market. A referendum may be called by the President at any time, but the method has been seldom used since De Gaulle left office. Most recently, Mitterrand called a referendum in 1992 regarding the Maastricht Treaty that set the current structure and goals of the European Union. The French electorate narrowly endorsed the treaty. |
|
Presidential Elections - The Constitution of 1958 greatly strengthened the president's position in the political system. At first the president was selected by a huge electoral college, but the Constitution was amended in 1962 to provide for direct popular two-round election. Until 2002 the president's term of office was seven years, but now it is five years. It is very easy to put a candidate on the first ballot, so most parties run their own person. The numerous candidates have insured that no presidential candidate has ever obtained the absolute majority needed for election on the first ballot. For example, a field of 16 candidates competed in the 2002 election, with Chirac getting the most votes &endash; a paltry 19.88% of the total. Runoffs are held two weeks after the first ballot, with only the two most successful candidates placed on the ballot. In 2002 Chirac increased his percentage to 82.21, with the National Front's Jean-Marie LePen as his only opponent. |
|
|
|
Parliamentary Elections - France has single-member districts, with 577 small electoral districts each represented in the National Assembly by a single deputy. On the first ballot, only those candidates are elected who obtain a majority of all votes cast. Because of the multiple parties and candidates, most elections are decided on the second ballot held one week later. In runoff elections any candidate with 12.5% of the vote or more may run, and only a plurality is needed to win. Usually eligible candidates with fewer votes withdraw from the race and encourage their voters to support another candidate on the same side of the political spectrum. This voting process encourages the formation of coalitions after the first ballot, in which parties swap favors, so that generally no more than two left-based candidates face two-right-based candidates, depending on the voting mix within each district. |
