National Assembly (France)
The National Assembly is the lower house of the bicameral French Parliament under the Fifth Republic, the upper house being the Senate. The National Assembly's legislators are known as députés.
There are 577 députés, each elected by a single-member constituency through a two-round voting system. Thus, 289 seats are required for a majority. The assembly is presided over by a president, 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 unless it has been dissolved in the preceding twelve months. This measure has become rarer since the 2000 referendum reduced the presidential term from seven to five years: a President usually has a majority elected in the Assembly two months after the presidential election, and it would be useless for him/her to dissolve it for those reasons.
Following a tradition started by the first National Assembly during the French Revolution, 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 as represented in the Assembly. The official seat of the National Assembly is the Palais Bourbon on the banks of the river Seine; the Assembly also uses other neighbouring buildings, including the Immeuble Chaban-Delmas on the rue de l'Université. It is guarded by Republican Guards.
Relationships with the executive
The Constitution of the French Fifth Republic greatly increased the power of the executive at the expense of Parliament, compared to previous constitutions.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 in 1997, following from the lack of popularity of prime minister Alain Juppé; however, the plan backfired, and the newly elected majority was opposed to Chirac.
The National Assembly can overthrow the executive government by a motion of no confidence. 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; this situation, which has occurred three times, 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, 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, and President Charles de Gaulle dissolved the Assembly within a few days.
The government 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. And the fourth one is set by the assembly. Also, one day per month is set by a "minority" or "opposition" group.
Legislators of the assembly can ask written or oral questions to ministers. The Wednesday afternoon 3 p.m. session of "questions to the Government" is broadcast live on television. Like Prime Minister's Questions in Britain, it is largely a show for the viewers, with members of the majority asking flattering questions, while the opposition tries to embarrass the government.
Elections
Since 1988, the 577 deputies are elected by direct universal suffrage with a two-round system 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, represented 188,000 voters, while the deputy for the least populous constituency, in the department of Lozère, represented only 34,000. The constituencies were redrawn in 2009, but this redistribution was controversial. Among other controversial measures, it created eleven constituencies and seats for French residents overseas, 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 of 10 July 1985 established a system of party-list proportional representation within the framework of the département. It was necessary within this framework to obtain at least 5% of the vote to elect an official. However, the legislative election of 1986, carried out under this system, gave France a new majority which returned the National Assembly to the plurality voting system described above.
Of the 577 elected deputies, 539 represent Metropolitan France, 27 represent the overseas departments and overseas collectivities, and 11 represent French residents overseas.
Discussing and voting laws
The agenda of the National Assembly is mostly decided by the government but the assembly can also enforce its agenda. Indeed, the article 48 of the constitution guarantee at least a monthly session decided by the assembly.1. A law proposal
A law proposal is a document divided into 3 distinct parts: a title, an exposé des motifs and a dispositif. The exposé des motifs describe the arguments in favor of a modification of a given law or new measurements that are proposed. The dispositif is the normative part, which is developed within articles.
A proposal for a law can be originated from the Prime minister or a member of the parliament. Certain laws must come from the government, including for example financial regulations.
The proposition of law may pass through the National Assembly and Senate in an indifferent order, except for financial which must go through the assembly first or territorial organizational laws or laws for French living in foreign countries, which must first pass through the Senate.
2. The deposit of a law
For an ordinary proposition of law, texts must be first reviewed by a permanent parliamentary commission or a special commission designated for this purpose. During the discussion in the commission or in plenary sessions in the assembly, the government and the parliament can add, modify or delete articles of the proposal. The text is thus amended. Amendments proposed by parliamentarian cannot mobilize further public funding. The government has to right to ask the assembly to pronounce themselves in one vote only with the amendments proposed or accepted by the government itself.
Projects of propositions of laws will be examined succinctly by the two assembly- National Assembly and the Senate- until the text is identical. After the two lectures by the two chambers and without any accord, the Prime Minister or the two Presidents of the two chambers -conjointly with him- can convoke a special commission composed by an equal number of parliamentarians and senators to reach a compromise and propose a new text. The new proposition has to be approved by the government before being re-proposed to the two assemblies. No new amendments can be added except on the government’s approval. If the new proposal of law fails to be approved by the two chambers, the government can, after a new lecture by the National Assembly and the Senate, ask the National Assembly to rule a final judgement. In that case, the National Assembly can either take back the text elaborated by the special commission or the last one that they voted for – possibly modified by several amendments by the Senate.
The president, on the government or the two assemblies’ proposal, can submit every law proposal as a referendum if it concerns the organization of public powers, reforms on the economy, social and environmental measures or every proposition that would have an impact on the well-functioning of the institutions. A referendum on the previous conditions can also be initiated by a fifth of the member of the parliament, supported by a tenth of the voters inscribed on the electoral lists.
Finally, the laws are promulgated by the President. He may call for a new legislative deliberation of the law or one of its articles in front of the National Assembly, which cannot be denied.
Conditions and privileges of deputies
Assembly legislators receive a salary of €7,043.69 per month. There is also the "compensation representing official expenses" of €5,867.39 per month to pay costs related to the office, and finally a total of €8,949 per month to pay up to five employees. They also have an office in the Assembly, various perquisites in terms of transport and communications, social security, a pension fund, and unemployment insurance. Under Article 26 of the Constitution, deputies, like Senators, are protected by parliamentary immunity. In the case of an accumulation of mandates, a deputy cannot receive a wage of more than €9,779.11.Accumulation of mandates and minimum age
The position of deputy of the National Assembly is incompatible with that of any other elected legislative position or with some administrative functions.Deputies may not have more than one local mandate in addition to their current mandate. Since the 2017 general election, deputies cannot hold an executive position in any local government. However, they can hold a part-time councillor mandate. As of July 2017, 58% of deputies hold such a seat. Since 1958, the mandate is also incompatible with a ministerial function. Upon appointment to the Government, the elected deputy 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 substitute. One month after the end of his cabinet position, the deputy returns to his seat in the Assembly.
To be eligible to be elected to the National Assembly, one must be at least 18 years old, of French citizenship, and not subject to a sentence of deprivation of civil rights or to personal bankruptcy.
Eligibility conditions
1. Eligibility due to personal requirements
The essential conditions to run for elections are the following. First, a candidate must have French citizenship. Secondly, the minimum age required to run for a seat at the National Assembly is set at 18 years old. The candidate must also have fulfilled his National Civic Day, a special day created to replace the military service. Finally, a candidate under guardianship and curatorship cannot be elected at the assembly.
Furthermore, a person cannot be elected if they were declared ineligible following fraudulent funding of a previous electoral campaign. Indeed, the voter would be considered as highly influenced and its decision making would be impacted. The sincerity of the results could thus not be regarded as viable and legitimate.
2. Eligibility due to positions that a person may occupy
The député mandate cannot be cumulated with a mandate of senators, European deputy, member of the government or of the constitutional council.
The député mandate is also incompatible with being a member of the military corps on duty, and with the exercised of one of the following mandates: regional councilor, councilor at the Assemblée de Corse, general councilor or being a municipal councilor of a municipality of a least or more than 3,500 inhabitants. Prefects are also unable to be elected in France in every district they are exercising power or exercised power for less than three years before the date of the election.
Since the 31st of March 2017, being elected national député is incompatible with local mandates such as mayors, president of a regional council or member of the departmental council.