See also special areas
At a glance
Structure of Parliament: Bicameral
Are there legislated quotas...
Are there voluntary quotas...
- Yes adopted by political parties?
Is there additional information?
YesFrance
(French Republic)
Single/Lower house
Assemblée nationale / National Assembly
| Total seats: | 577 |
| Total women: | 155 |
| % women: | 27% |
| Election year: | 2012 |
| Electoral system: | TRS |
| Quota type: | Legislated Candidate Quotas |
| Election details: |
IDEA Voter Turnout
IPU Parline |
| Legal source | Details | |
|---|---|---|
| Quota type: Legislated Candidate Quotas |
Constitution | The constitutional law on equality between women and men (1999) provides for the principle of equal access of women and men to electoral mandates and elective positions, and stipulates, that political parties contribute to the implementation of this principle. (Constitution, Article 3 & 4). |
| Electoral law | The law on equal access of women and men to electoral mandates and elective positions (2000), requires parties which contest elections organized based on the list system to ensure the presence of 50 % of each sex on their lists of candidates (margin of one unit allowed), or face the sanctions of the lists being rejected. This requirement applies to elections to the European Parliament, regional and Senate elections (in departments with four or more seats) and municipal elections (with population of at least 3500). The difference between the number of candidates from each sex that a party or group of parties present for single-member constituency elections, can not be greater than two percent in single member constituencies (Law n°88-227, Article 9-1). | |
| Legal sanctions for non-compliance: | Electoral law | For legislative elections with single-member plurality/majority systems, the penalty for non-compliance with 50 % parity rule (only 2 percent of margin allowed) will result in a financial penalty calculated in the following way: the public funding provided to parties based on the number of votes they receive in the first round of elections will be decreased ‘by a percentage equivalent to half the difference between the total number of candidates of each sex, out of the total number of candidates’. (Law n°88-227, Article 9-1). E.g: if only 40 percent of female candidates are presented, the difference between the number of female and male candidates presented is 20 points. Accordingly, the fine will amount to a 10 percent cut. |
| Rank order/placement rules: | Electoral law | For list system elections with one round (EP, Senate and regional elections), female and male candidates should alternate throughout the list, and for elections with two rounds (regional elections, and municipal elections in towns or cities with population of 3500 or more) parity between candidates should be maintained in groups of every six candidates |
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Last updated 2012-08-21
Upper house
Sénat / Senate
| Total seats: | 348 |
| Total women: | 77 |
| % women: | 22% |
| Election year: | 2011 |
| Electoral system: | Indirectly elected |
| Quota type: | Legislated Candidate Quotas |
| Election details: | IPU Parline |
| Legal source | Details | |
|---|---|---|
| Quota type: Legislated Candidate Quotas |
Electoral law | For the list PR election to the Senate (the larger districts) a strict alteration between men and women on the lists is required (Electoral Code, Article L300). |
| Constitution | The constitutional law on equality between women and men (1999) provides for the principle of equal access of women and men to electoral mandates and elective positions, and stipulates, that political parties contribute to the implementation of this principle. (Constitution, Article 3 & 4). | |
| Legal sanctions for non-compliance: | Electoral law | If a party does not abide to the rule of parity, the list is invalidated. |
| Rank order/placement rules: | Electoral law | For the list PR election to the Senate (the larger districts) a strict alteration between men and women on the lists is required (Electoral Code, Article L300). |
Sources | Additional information | Contact us
Last updated 2010-06-10
Quota at the Sub-National Level
| Quota type: | Legislated Candidate Quotas |
| Legal source | Details | |
|---|---|---|
| Quota type: Legislated Candidate Quotas |
Electoral law | Strict alternation on candidate lists is required for regional councils, municipal councils in towns with more than 3 500 inhabitants, in elections to the local bodies in Corsica and Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon, the council of Paris and the municipal arrondissement councils of Paris, Lyons, and Marseille (Electoral Code, Articles L264, L331-2, L346, L370). |
| Legal sanctions for non-compliance: | Electoral law | If a party does not abide to the rule of parity on local levels, the list is invalidated. |
| Rank order/placement rules: | Electoral law | Strict alternation on candidate lists is required for regional councils, municipal councils in towns with more than 3 500 inhabitants, in elections to the local bodies in Corsica and Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon, the council of Paris and the municipal arrondissement councils of Paris, Lyons, and Marseille (Electoral Code, Articles L264, L331-2, L346, L370). |
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Last updated 2010-06-10
Voluntary Political Party Quotas*
| Party | Acronym | Official Name | Details, Quota provisions |
|---|---|---|---|
| Socialist Party | PS | Parti Socialiste | The PS has a 50 percent quota for electoral lists (1990). |
* Only political parties represented in parliament are included. When a country has legislated quotas in place, only political parties that have voluntary quotas that exceed the percentage/number of the national quota legislation are presented in this table.
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Last updated 2009-11-30
