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Politics in France

Politics in France. The political system. French Republic: the basics. Population: 66 million Constitutional republic Unitary state Semi-presidential system (President and a Prime Minister) First Past the Post (FPTP) electoral system with “Two-round” process

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Politics in France

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  1. Politics in France The political system

  2. French Republic: the basics • Population: 66 million • Constitutional republic • Unitary state • Semi-presidential system (President and a Prime Minister) • First Past the Post (FPTP) electoral system with “Two-round” process • Bicameral Legislature: National Assembly and Senate

  3. 5 Republics & 2 Empires • First Republic was ended (1803) by Napoleon’s First Empire • Second Republic was ended (1851) by Napoleon III’s Second Empire • Third Republic was ended (1940) by German occupation • Fourth Republic (1946 - 1958) • Fifth Republic (1958-Present)

  4. Fourth Republic (1946 - 1958) • Crises of the Fourth Republic • 24 governments in 12 years

  5. 1958 Constitution • Passed referendum which increased powers of the president

  6. President of the Fifth Republic • directly elected by voters (since 1962) • renewable term of 5 years (since 2000)

  7. President’s power • Head of state • appoints prime minister • appoint ministers • Can dissolve the National Assembly • submit legislation to a referendum • emergency power (up to 6 months) • Commander-in-chief of the armed forces

  8. The Prime Minister • Is subordinate to the President except in those circumstances when the prime minister comes from a different party • Under co-habitation, the powers of both leaders are equal • Prime Minister is responsible for domestic affairs while President is commander in chief and deals with foreign affairs • Prime Minister has same power as prime ministers in a parliamentary system (chooses cabinet), but needs to have support of the lower assembly and the President

  9. Presidential elections • elected by absolute majority of votes • no presidential candidate has obtained the absolute majority on the first ballot • if no candidate wins majority in first ballot • the top two candidates stand for election in a second runoff ballot • impact on voter turnout (80% turnout in 2012 compared to 58% in 2012 U.S. election)

  10. President & Prime Minister • President appoints and chooses prime minister and other ministers • President chairs the Council of Ministers • Prime minister has to harness parliamentary majority for presidential policies

  11. Example of the Two-round system French Presidential Election 2002 Round 1: Jacques Chirac: 19.88% Jean-Marie Le Pen: 16.86% Lionel Jospin: 16.18% Round 2: Jacques Chirac: 82.12% Jean-Marie Le Pen: 17.82% Jean-Marie Le Pen

  12. President & Prime Minister • When president and the prime minister are from the same political party, the prime minister is subordinate to president • Cohabitation • president and prime minister from different political parties • 1986 - 1988, 1993 - 1995, 1997 - 2002

  13. Legislature • Power of parliament was restricted by the 1958 Constitution of the Fifth Republic • Two houses (bicameral) • National Assembly • 577 members • Senate • 348 members

  14. Parliament • incompatibility clause • members of parliament have to give up their seats once appointed to a cabinet • bloc (blocked) vote • National Assembly have to vote either for or against the government’s draft as a whole • cannot offer any amendments to the bill L’assemble Nationale

  15. Senate • Senators are indirectly elected by an electoral college • less than 150,000 people select senators • municipal, departmental, and regional council members • rural constituencies are over-represented • Senate can initiate legislation

  16. Senate • Senate must consider all bills adopted by the National Assembly • if the two houses disagree • government can appoint a joint committee to try to resolve the differences • government can re-submit the bill to the National Assembly for a definitive vote

  17. National Assembly elections • Single-member district • 577 districts • two-ballot system • if no candidate wins a majority, a second ballot is held one week later • any candidate winning at least 12.5% of the vote on the first ballot can run on the second • incentives for parties to develop electoral alliances • French presidential election, 2012 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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