France: Governance and
Policymaking Institutions
I. The Fifth Republic II. Legislative
Constitution
IV. Administrative
System
II. Executive
I. Fifth Republic Constitution
„
Hybrid
y
Executive
Gaullist Dominance
„ Opposition Acceptance
„
„
„
„
Republican Government
P
Popular
l Sovereignty
S
i
Sovereignty within the
EU
Declaration
D
l ti off Rights
Ri ht
of Man and Citizen
II. Executive
„
President
Direct Election in Two Round System
„ Political Management
„ Cohabitation
„ Policy-Making
„
„
Prime Minister
„
„
Relationship with President
Government
„
Council of Ministers
„
Cumul des Mandats
Elysee Palace
President’s Residence
2002 Presidential Election Results
President: 21 April and 5 May
Ma 2002
Jacques Chirac (Rassemblement pour la République)
Jean-Marie le Pen (Front National)
Lionel Jospin (Parti Socialiste)
Francois Bayrou (Union pour la Démocratie Francaise)
Arlette Laguiller (Lutte Ouvriere)
Jean-Piere Chevenement ((Pole republican)
p
)
Noel Mamere (Les Verts)
Olivier Besancenot (Ligue Commuiste Revolutionnaire)
Seven Others with >4% each
%
19.9
16.9
16 2
16.2
6.8
5.7
5.3
5.2
4.2
15.5
%
82.2
17.8
--------
2007 French Election Results
Summary of the 22 April and 6 May 2007 French presidential election results
Candidates – Parties
1st round
Nicolas Sarkozy
Union for a Popular Movement (Union pour un mouvement populaire)
Ségolène Royal
Socialist Party (Parti socialiste)
François Bayrou
Union for French Democracy (Union pour la démocratie française)
Jean‐Marie
Jean
Marie Le Pen
Le Pen
National Front (Front national)
National Front (Front national)
Olivier Besancenot
Revolutionary Communist League (Ligue communiste révolutionnaire)
2nd round
Votes
%
Votes
%
11,448,663
31.18%
18,983,138
53.06%
9,500,112
25.87%
16,790,440
46.94%
6,820,119
18.57%
3 834 530
3,834,530
10 44%
10.44%
1,498,581
4.08%
818,407
2.23%
Philippe de Villiers
Movement for France (Mouvement pour la France)
Marie‐George Buffet
Popular and anti‐liberal Left, supported by the French Communist Party (gauche populaire et antilibérale, soutenue par le Parti communiste français)
707,268
1.93%
Dominique Voynet
Dominique Voynet
The Greens (Les Verts)
The Greens (Les Verts)
576,666
1.57%
Arlette Laguiller
Workers' Struggle (Lutte ouvrière)
487,857
1.33%
José Bové
Alter‐globalization activist
483,008
1.32%
Frédéric Nihous
Hunting, Fishing, Nature, Tradition (Chasse, pêche, nature, traditions)
420,645
1.15%
Gérard Schivardi
Workers' Party (Parti des travailleurs)
123,540
0.34%
Total
36,719,396
35,773,578
Presidents of the Fifth Republic
„
„
„
„
„
„
„
Charles de Gaulle (1958-69)
(1958 69)
Georges Pompidou (1969-74)
V l Gi
Valery
Giscard
d d’E
d’Estaing
i (19
(1974-81)
4 81)
Francois Mitterrand (1981-95)
Jacques Chirac (1995-2007)
Nicolas Sarkozy (2007-Present)
(2007 Present)
Ten US Presidents in same time period
France
France’ss ‘Hybrid
Hybrid Executive’
Executive
President
Prime Minister
Appoints (Dismisses) PM
Picks Cabinet (President Presides)
Dissolves Legislature
g
(Limited)
(
)
Sets Policyy
Presides over Council of
Ministers
Conducts Foreign Policy
Formulates and Introduces
Legislation
Implements Laws
Head of Armed Forces
Appoints
pp
Civil and Militaryy Posts
Appoints Members to
Constitutional Council
Guarantor of National
Independence (from 1940)
II. Executive
„
President
Direct Election in Two Round System
„ Political Management
„ Cohabitation
„ Policy-Making
„
„
Prime Minister
„
„
Relationship with President
Government
„
Council of Ministers
„
Cumul de Mandats
Elysee P
El
Palace
l
President’s Residence
III. Legislature
„
National Assembly
„
„
„
Senate
„
„
„
„
577 members, directly elected to five year terms
Two round plurality vote (12.5% threshold)
321 members; elected through departmental electoral colleges
of national and local officials
Nine year terms with 1/3 up every 3 years
Censure
Constitutional Challenge
Chamber of the French
National Assembly
IV. Administrative System
„
The French ‘Strong State’
„
„
„
dirigisme (activist economic policy)
Bureaucrats in French Society
G d E
Grandes
Ecoles
l
Ecole Polytechnique (Engineering & Science)
„ Ecole Nationale d’Adminstration (ENA –
Administrative training)
„ Graduates of ENA dubbed ‘enarques’
„
„
pantouflage: moving from government to cushy
private position.