1978 French legislative election

none February 2008 June 2021 1978 French legislative election France legislative no 1973 French legislative election 1973 1981 French legislative election 1981 All 491 seats to the French National Assembly 246 seats were needed for a majority 12 and 19 March 1978 82.8% ( 1.6 pp) (1st round) 84.7% ( 1.9 pp) (2nd round) Jacques Chirac 1980.jpg 130 130 150 0 0 Jacques Chirac Rally for the Republic Corrèze-3rd 183 seats (UDR) 150 33 6,462,462 (1 round) 6,651,756 (2 round) 22.62% (1 round) 26.11% (2 round) Confidences de François Mitterrand (cropped).jpg 130 130 150 0 0 François Mitterrand Socialist Party (France) Nièvre-3rd 102 seats, 20.7% 104 2 6,451,151 (1 round) 7,212,916 (2 round) 22.58% (1 round) 28.31% (2 round) Lecanuet 1984.jpg 130 130 150 0 0 Jean Lecanuet Union for French Democracy Seine-Maritime (Senator) 119 seats (MR) 121 2 6,128,849 (1st round) 5,907,603 (2nd round) 21.45% (1st round) 23.18% (2nd round) Georges Marchais (cropped) 2.JPG 130 130 150 0 0 Georges Marchais French Communist Party none 73 seats, 21.4% 86 13 5,870,402 (1st round) 4,744,868 (2nd round) 20.55% (1st round) 18.62% (2nd round) 350px Prime Minister Raymond Barre Union for French Democracy Raymond Barre Union for French Democracy   file:File:France Parliament 1978.svg Legislative elections were held in France on 12 and 19 March 1978 to elect the sixth National Assembly of the Fifth Republic. The election results were a victory for conservatives. The results were considered a surprise, as most electoral indications were that the left-wing would win the elections.Wright Vincent 1978 The French general election of March 1978: La divine surprise https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/01402387808424210 West European Politics 1 3 24–52 10.1080/01402387808424210 0140-2382 subscription On 2 April 1974, President Georges Pompidou died. The non-Gaullist centre-right leader Valéry Giscard d'Estaing was elected to succeed him. Because the Gaullist Union of Democrats for the Republic (Union des démocrates pour la République, UDR) was the largest party in the pro-Giscard majority in the Assembly, Giscard chose Jacques Chirac to lead the cabinet. This period was one of renovation for Gaullism. The presidential will to "govern towards the centre" and to promote a "modern liberal society" disconcerted the Gaullist party. The Abortion Act and the reduction of the age of majority to 18 years worried a part of the conservative electorate. Furthermore, a personal conflict opposed the two heads of the executive. In August 1976, Chirac resigned because he considered that he did not have "the means to carry on [his] function of Prime Minister". Three months later, the UDR was replaced by the Rally for the Republic (Rassemblement pour la République, RPR). This, Chirac's electoral machine, was officially a member of the Presidential Majority but frequently criticized the liberal and pro-European policy of President Giscard d'Estaing and his new prime minister Raymond Barre. The executive duo reacted by federating the non-Gaullist centre-right in the Union for French Democracy (Union pour la démocratie française, UDF). While the right-wing majority was divided and the economic situation deteriorated, the "Union of the Left" won the mid-term local elections. According to the polls, it was the favourite to win the legislative election. In his Verdun-sur-le-Doubs speech, President Giscard d'Estaing warned the French voters that he could not prevent the enforcement of the left-wing Common programme if the "Union of the Left" won. The Socialist Party (Parti socialiste, PS) and the French Communist Party (Parti communiste français, PCF) did not update their Common programme due to increasing tension between the two parties resulting from the PS gaining in electoral success at the PCF's expense. For the first time since 1936, the Socialists obtained more votes than the Communists. Furthermore, the French electorate appeared evenly shared among four equivalent political parties (RPR, UDF, PS, PCF). Barre was confirmed as Prime Minister. Until the 2007 French legislative election, it was the last time that either the right or the left had won back-to-back legislative elections. Results Rally for the Republic 6462462 31 6651756 119 150 Socialist Party 6451151 1 7212916 103 104 Union for French Democracy 6128849 26 5907603 98 124 French Communist Party 5870402 4 4744868 82 86 Far-left 953088 0 0 Miscellaneous 793274 0 57418 1 1 Presidential majority 684985 6 305763 10 16 Ecologists 612100 0 0 Radical Movement of the Left 603932 0 595478 10 10 581736 730908 35204152   30956076 Roi et President, IPU, Quid File:France Parliament 1978.svg References External links Map of Deputies elected in 1978 according to their group in the House, including overseas (in french) Category:Legislative elections in France Legislative