French National Assembly - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The French National Assembly is the lower house

Lower house

A lower house is one of two chambers of a bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the upper house.Despite its official position "below" the upper house, in many legislatures worldwide the lower house has come to wield more power...

of the bicameral Parliament of France

Parliament of France

The French Parliament is the bicameral legislature of the French Republic, consisting of the Senate and the National Assembly . Each assembly conducts legislative sessions at a separate location in Paris: the Palais du Luxembourg for the Senate, the Palais Bourbon for the National Assembly.Each...

under the Fifth Republic

French Fifth Republic

The Fifth Republic is the fifth and current republican constitution of France, introduced on 4 October 1958. The Fifth Republic emerged from the collapse of the French Fourth Republic, replacing the prior parliamentary government with a semi-presidential system...

. The upper house

Upper house

An upper house, often called a senate, is one of two chambers of a bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the lower house; a legislature composed of only one house is described as unicameral.- Possible specific characteristics :...

is the Senate ("Sénat").

The National Assembly's members are known as députés ("delegate" or "envoy" in English; the word is an etymological cognate

Cognate

In linguistics, cognates are words that have a common etymological origin. This learned term derives from the Latin cognatus . Cognates within the same language are called doublets. Strictly speaking, loanwords from another language are usually not meant by the term, e.g...

of the English word "deputy", usually "adjoint" in French).

There are 577 députés, each elected by a single-member constituency through a two-rounds system

Two-round system

The two-round system is a voting system used to elect a single winner where the voter casts a single vote for their chosen candidate...

. 289 seats are therefore required for a majority. The assembly is presided over by a president (currently Bernard Accoyer

Bernard Accoyer

Bernard Accoyer is a French politician who is currently the President of the National Assembly of France, as well as the Mayor of Annecy-le-Vieux.-Biography:...

), normally from the largest party represented, assisted by vice-presidents from across the represented political spectrum.

The term of the National Assembly is five years; however, the President of the Republic may dissolve the Assembly (thereby calling for new elections) unless he has dissolved it in the preceding twelve months. This measure is becoming rarer since the 2000 referendum

French constitutional referendum, 2000

A constitutional referendum was held in France on 24 September 2000. The proposals would result in the mandate of the President being reduced from seven years to five years in line with terms in office in other European countries...

reduced the President's term from seven to five years : a President usually has a majority elected in the Assembly two months after him, and it would be useless for him to dissolve it for those reasons.

The official seat of the National Assembly is the Palais Bourbon

Palais Bourbon

The Palais Bourbon, , a palace located on the left bank of the Seine, across from the Place de la Concorde, Paris , is the seat of the French National Assembly, the lower legislative chamber of the French government.-History:...

on the banks of the river Seine

Seine

The Seine is a -long river and an important commercial waterway within the Paris Basin in the north of France. It rises at Saint-Seine near Dijon in northeastern France in the Langres plateau, flowing through Paris and into the English Channel at Le Havre . It is navigable by ocean-going vessels...

(48.861899°N 2.318605°W); the Assembly also uses other neighbouring buildings, including the Immeuble Chaban-Delmas on the rue de l'Université (48.860799°N 2.315902°W). It is guarded by Republican Guards

French Republican Guard

The Republican Guard is part of the French Gendarmerie. It is responsible for providing security in the Paris area and for providing guards of honor.Its missions include:...

.

Following a tradition started by the first National Assembly

National Assembly (French Revolution)

During the French Revolution, the National Assembly , which existed from June 17 to July 9, 1789, was a transitional body between the Estates-General and the National Constituent Assembly.-Background:...

during the French Revolution

French Revolution

The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...

, the "left-wing" parties sit to the left as seen from the president's seat, and the "right-wing" parties sit to the right, and the seating arrangement thus directly indicates the political spectrum

Political spectrum

A political spectrum is a way of modeling different political positions by placing them upon one or more geometric axes symbolizing independent political dimensions....

as represented in the Assembly.

Relationships with the executive

The Constitution

Constitution of France

The current Constitution of France was adopted on 4 October 1958. It is typically called the Constitution of the Fifth Republic, and replaced that of the Fourth Republic dating from 1946. Charles de Gaulle was the main driving force in introducing the new constitution and inaugurating the Fifth...

of the French Fifth Republic

French Fifth Republic

greatly increased the power of the executive at the expense of Parliament, compared to previous constitutions (Third

French Third Republic

The French Third Republic was the republican government of France from 1870, when the Second French Empire collapsed due to the French defeat in the Franco-Prussian War, to 1940, when France was overrun by Nazi Germany during World War II, resulting in the German and Italian occupations of France...

and Fourth Republic

French Fourth Republic

The French Fourth Republic was the republican government of France between 1946 and 1958, governed by the fourth republican constitution. It was in many ways a revival of the Third Republic, which was in place before World War II, and suffered many of the same problems...

).

The President of the Republic can decide to dissolve the National Assembly and call for new legislative elections. This is meant as a way to resolve stalemates where the Assembly cannot decide on a clear political direction. This possibility is seldom exercised. The last dissolution was by Jacques Chirac

Jacques Chirac

Jacques René Chirac is a French politician who served as President of France from 1995 to 2007. He previously served as Prime Minister of France from 1974 to 1976 and from 1986 to 1988 , and as Mayor of Paris from 1977 to 1995.After completing his studies of the DEA's degree at the...

in 1997, following from the lack of popularity of prime minister Alain Juppé

Alain Juppé

Alain Marie Juppé is a French politician currently serving as the Minister of Foreign Affairs. He also served as Prime Minister of France from 1995 to 1997 under President Jacques Chirac and the Minister of Defence and Veterans Affairs from 2010 to 2011...

; however, the plan backfired, and the newly elected majority was opposed to Chirac.

The National Assembly can overthrow the executive government (that is, the Prime Minister and other ministers) by a vote of no-confidence (motion de censure). For this reason, the prime minister and his cabinet are necessarily from the dominant party or coalition in the assembly. In the case of a president and assembly from opposing parties, this leads to the situation known as cohabitation
Cohabitation (government)
Cohabitation in government occurs in semi-presidential systems, such as France's system, when the President is from a different political party than the majority of the members of parliament. It occurs because such a system forces the president to name a premier that will be acceptable to the...

; this situation, which has occurred three times (twice under Mitterrand, once under Chirac), is likely to be rarer now that presidential and assembly terms are the same length.

While motions de censure are periodically proposed by the opposition following government actions that it deems highly inappropriate, they are purely rhetorical; party discipline ensures that, throughout a parliamentary term, the government is never overthrown by the Assembly. Since the beginning of the Fifth Republic

French Fifth Republic

, there has only been one single successful motion de censure, in 1962 in hostility to the referendum on the method of election of the President

French presidential election referendum, 1962

A referendum on the direct election of the President was held in France on 28 October 1962. It was approved by 62.3% of voters with a 77.0% turnout...

, and president Charles de Gaulle

Charles de Gaulle

Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle was a French general and statesman who led the Free French Forces during World War II. He later founded the French Fifth Republic in 1958 and served as its first President from 1959 to 1969....

dissolved the Assembly within a few days.

The Government (the Prime Minister and the Minister of relationships with Parliament) used to set the priorities of the agenda for the Assembly's sessions, except for a single day each month. In practice, given the number of priority items, it meant that the schedule of the Assembly was almost entirely set by the executive; bills generally only have a chance to be examined if proposed or supported by the executive. This, however, was amended on 23 July 2008. Under the amended constitution, the Government sets the priorities for two weeks in a month. Another week is designated for the Assembly's "control" prerogatives (consisting mainly of verbal questions addressed to the government). And the fourth one is set by the Assembly. Also, one day per month is set by a "minority" (group supporting the government but which isn't the biggest group) or "opposition" (group having officially declared it didn't support the government) group.

Members of the assembly can ask written or oral questions to ministers. The Wednesday afternoon session of oral "questions to the Government" is shown on television. It is largely a show for the viewers, with members of the majority generally asking praising questions, while the opposition tries to embarrass the government.

Elections

Since 1988, the 577 deputies are elected by the direct universal suffrage

Universal suffrage

Universal suffrage consists of the extension of the right to vote to adult citizens as a whole, though it may also mean extending said right to minors and non-citizens...

with a two-round system

Two-round system

The two-round system is a voting system used to elect a single winner where the voter casts a single vote for their chosen candidate...

by constituency, for a five-year mandate, subject to dissolution. The constituencies each have approximately 100,000 inhabitants. The electoral law of 1986 specifies that variations of population between constituencies should not, in any case, lead to a constituency exceeding more than 20% the average population of the constituencies of the département. However, districts were not redrawn between 1982 and 2009. As a result of population movements over that period, there were inequalities between the less populous rural districts and the urban districts. For example, the deputy for the most populous constituency, in the department of Val-d'Oise

Val-d'Oise

Val-d'Oise is a French department, created in 1968 after the split of the Seine-et-Oise department and located in the Île-de-France region. In local slang, it is known as "quatre-vingt quinze" or "neuf cinq"...

, represented 188,000 voters, while the deputy for the least populous constituency, in the department of Lozère

Lozère

Lozère , is a department in southeast France near the Massif Central, named after Mont Lozère.- History :Lozère is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790...

, represented only 34,000. The constituencies were redrawn in 2009, but this redistribution

Redistribution (election)

Redistribution , called redistricting in the United States, is the process of changing of political borders. This is a form of boundary delimitation that changes electoral district boundaries, usually in response to periodic census results that cause malportionment of representation...

was controversial. Among other controversial measures, it created eleven constituencies and seats for French residents overseas

Constituencies for French residents overseas

The constituencies for French residents overseas are eleven French constituencies, each electing one representative to the National Assembly....

, albeit without increasing the overall number of seats beyond 577.

To be elected in the first round of voting, a candidate must obtain at least 50% of the votes cast, with a turn-out of at least 25% of the registered voters on the electoral rolls. If no candidate is elected in the first round, those who poll in excess of 12.5% of the registered voters in the first-round vote are entered in the second round of voting. If no candidate comply such conditions, the two highest-placing candidates advance to second round. In the second round, the candidate who receives the most votes is elected. Each candidate is enrolled along with a substitute, who takes the candidate's place in the event of inability to represent the constituency, when the deputy becomes minister for example.

The organic law

Organic law

An organic or fundamental law is a law or system of laws which forms the foundation of a government, corporation or other organization's body of rules. A constitution is a particular form of organic law for a sovereign state....

of 10 July 1985 established a system of party-list proportional representation

Party-list proportional representation

Party-list proportional representation systems are a family of voting systems emphasizing proportional representation in elections in which multiple candidates are elected...

within the framework of the . It was necessary within this framework to obtain at least 5% of the vote to elect an official. However, the legislative election of 1986

French legislative election, 1986

The French legislative elections took place on 16 March 1986 to elect the 8th National Assembly of the Fifth Republic. Contrary to other legislative elections of the Fifth Republic, the electoral system used was that of Party-list proportional representation.Since the 1981 election of François...

, carried out under this system, gave France a new majority which returned to the plurality voting system

Plurality voting system

The plurality voting system is a single-winner voting system often used to elect executive officers or to elect members of a legislative assembly which is based on single-member constituencies...

. There are 570 elected officials of the departments, five representatives of the overseas collectivities (two for French Polynesia

French Polynesia

French Polynesia is an overseas country of the French Republic . It is made up of several groups of Polynesian islands, the most famous island being Tahiti in the Society Islands group, which is also the most populous island and the seat of the capital of the territory...

, one for Wallis and Futuna

Wallis and Futuna

Wallis and Futuna, officially the Territory of the Wallis and Futuna Islands , is a Polynesian French island territory in the South Pacific between Tuvalu to the northwest, Rotuma of Fiji to the west, the main part of Fiji to the southwest, Tonga to the southeast,...

, one for Saint Pierre and Miquelon and one for Mayotte

Mayotte

Mayotte is an overseas department and region of France consisting of a main island, Grande-Terre , a smaller island, Petite-Terre , and several islets around these two. The archipelago is located in the northern Mozambique Channel in the Indian Ocean, namely between northwestern Madagascar and...

) and two for New Caledonia

New Caledonia

New Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...

since 1986.

Conditions and privileges for members

The allowances and privileges of the members: Assembly members receive a salary of 7,043.69 euros per month (USD 10,389.49). There is also the "compensation representing official expenses" ("IRFM" – indemnité représentative de frais de mandat) of 5 867,39 euros per month (USD 8,654.44) to pay costs related to the office, and finally a total of 8 949 euros per month (USD 11,884.07) to pay up to 5 employees. They also have an office in the Assembly, various advantages in terms of transport and communications, social security, a pension fund and unemployment insurance specific. Under Article 26 of the Constitution, deputies, like Senators, are protected by parliamentary immunity.
In the case of an accumulation of mandates, a member cannot receive a wage of more than 9 779.11 euros (USD 14,424.25).

Accumulation of mandates and minimum age (see Cumul des mandats

Cumul des mandats

The cumul des mandats , is a political practice that has evidenced itself in modern French politics. It consists of holding several political offices at multiple levels of government...

): Since 1958, the position of member of the National Assembly is incompatible with that of any other elected member (Senator or Member of European Parliament

European Parliament

The European Parliament is the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union . Together with the Council of the European Union and the Commission, it exercises the legislative function of the EU and it has been described as one of the most powerful legislatures in the world...

), or with some administrative functions (members of the Constitutional Council of France

Constitutional Council of France

The Constitutional Council is the highest constitutional authority in France. It was established by the Constitution of the Fifth Republic on 4 October 1958, and its duty is to ensure that the principles and rules of the constitution are upheld.Its main activity is to rule on whether proposed...

and senior officials such as prefects, magistrates or officers who are ineligible for Department where they are stationed). Members may not have more than one local mandate (in a municipal, intercommunal, general or regional council) in addition to their current mandate. The mandate is also incompatible with a ministerial function. Upon appointment to the Government, the elected member has one month to choose between the mandate and the office. If he or she chooses the second option, then they are replaced by their deputy.

To be eligible to be elected to the National Assembly, one must be at least 23 years old, of French citizenship, and not subject to a sentence of deprivation of civil rights or to personal bankruptcy

Personal bankruptcy

Personal bankruptcy is a procedure which, in certain jurisdictions, allows an individual to declare bankruptcy. In other jurisdictions, bankruptcies are reserved for corporations.-Canada:...

Current membership

The last legislative elections, held in June 2007

French legislative election, 2007

The French legislative elections took place on 10 June and 17 June 2007 to elect the 13th National Assembly of the Fifth Republic, a few weeks after the French presidential election run-off on 6 May. 7,639 candidates stood for 577 seats, including France's overseas possessions...

resulted in the following distribution of seats:

13th Assembly by parliamentary group

French National Assembly
French National Assembly
The French National Assembly is the lower house of the bicameral Parliament of France under the Fifth Republic. The upper house is the Senate ....

by parliamentary group
	Leader	Parties	Total
Union for a Popular Movement Union for a Popular Movement The Union for a Popular Movement is a centre-right political party in France, and one of the two major contemporary political parties in the country along with the center-left Socialist Party... (Union pour un Mouvement Populaire)	Christian Jacob Christian Jacob Christian Jacob is a lyrical jazz pianist who ranks among the top piano improvisers and accompanists working today. He has gained widespread exposure as musical director and performer with vocalist Tierney Sutton, although he has also maintained a substantial career as a solo artist and...	UMP, DVD	320
Socialist, Radical, and Citizen Group (Groupe socialiste, radical, et citoyen)	Jean-Marc Ayrault Jean-Marc Ayrault Jean-Marc Ayrault is a French politician and a member of the French Socialist Party. He is currently Mayor of Nantes and President of the Socialist Party group in the French National Assembly....	PS, PRG, DVG, MRC	204
Democratic and Republican Left Gauche démocrate et républicaine The Democratic and Republican Left is a French parliamentary group in the 13th Assembly elected in 2007.This is the first time since the 1958-1962 legislature that the Communists have been unable to form an exclusive group of Communist deputies.... (Gauche démocrate et républicaine)	Jean-Claude Sandrier Jean-Claude Sandrier Jean-Claude Sandrier is a French politician and former Mayor of Bourges. He is a member of the French Communist Party....	PCF, VEC, DVG, MIM	24
New Centre-Presidential Majority (Nouveau Centre-Majorité Présidentielle)	François Sauvadet François Sauvadet François Sauvadet is the president of the Côte-d'Or department and the parliamentary leader of the New Centre. He is a member of the New Centre. He represents the 4th constituency of the Cote-d'Or inthe French National Assembly....	NC-PSLE, MAJ, DVD	23
Non-Inscrits		MoDem, DLR, MPF	6
Total			577

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.

Relationships with the executive

Elections

Conditions and privileges for members

Current membership

13th Assembly by parliamentary group

See also

External links