Constituencies for French residents overseas

The eleven constituencies. (Note North Korea, Bhutan and Western Sahara in grey.)

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

They were created by the 2010 redistricting of French legislative constituencies, the aim of which was to enable French citizens overseas (Français établis hors de France) to be represented as such, rather than vote in a constituency on French territory, as was the case previously. Their creation does not increase the overall number of seats in the Assembly, which remains stable at 577, since it is compensated for by a redrawing of boundaries which reduces the number of seats in France itself to 566. These measures will be implemented for the June 2012 legislative election. (There are already Senators representing overseas citizens, since 1982, but, like all French Senators, they are elected indirectly, by the Assembly of French Citizens Abroad.)^{[1] [2] [3] [4]}

The creation of these constituencies created some controversy, when Le Monde estimated that they would be far more favourable to the main centre-right party, the Union for a Popular Movement, then in power, than to the main centre-left party, the Socialist Party. The newspaper pointed out that, in nine of these constituencies, a majority of voters appeared to favour the right, based on the figures from the 2007 French presidential election. The constituency of Central and Eastern Europe and that of North-West Africa were the only ones to appear left-leaning.^[5] While Le Monde provided the figures without comment, left-wing politicians such as Socialist MP Jean-Jacques Urvoas suggested that the government was attempting to provide itself with extra seats, and Communist MP Jean-Paul Lecoq suggested overseas citizens should continue to vote solely in French constituencies.^[6]

In all, the Americas are divided into two constituencies, North and South (1 & 2); Europe into six (3 to 8), with the eighth constituency also incorporating Israel; and Africa into two (9 & 10), with the tenth constituency also incorporating the Arabian peninsula as well as Iraq, Syria and Lebanon. The eleventh constituency, the largest, includes every other country in Asia, as well as the entirety of Oceania, along with Belarus, Moldova and Ukraine. Overseas departments and territories of France are not included, as they are de jure part of France, and already have their own electoral constituencies. In addition, North Korea, which is not diplomatically recognised by France, is not part of any constituency. The same is true of Bhutan. Kosovo, which is recognised by France, is part of the seventh constituency. Taiwan is incorporated into the eleventh constituency as part of China, as France recognises the One China policy. Western Sahara is not part of any constituency - being neither recognised as part of Morocco, nor included in the ninth constituency in its own right. Other self-proclaimed and de facto but non-recognised independent countries, such as Somaliland or Abkhazia, are incorporated as part of the country which claims sovereignty over them.^[7]

List of constituencies

Constituency	Region	Number of countries included (as recognised by France)	Current MP	Photo	Party	Elected in...
First	Canada and United States	two	to be determined	-	-	2012
Second	Central America, Caribbean and South America	thirty-three	to be determined	-	-	2012
Third	Northern Europe	ten	to be determined	-	-	2012
Fourth	Benelux	three	to be determined	-	-	2012
Fifth	Andorra, Monaco, Portugal and Spain	four	to be determined	-	-	2012
Sixth	Liechtenstein and Switzerland	two	to be determined	-	-	2012
Seventh	Central and Eastern Europe	sixteen (including Kosovo)	to be determined	-	-	2012
Eighth	Southern Europe and Israel	eight	to be determined	-	-	2012
Ninth	North-west Africa	sixteen	to be determined	-	-	2012
Tenth	Central, Eastern and Southern Africa, much of the Middle East	forty-eight	to be determined	-	-	2012
Eleventh	Belarus, Ukraine, Moldova, Oceania, most of Asia	forty-nine	to be determined	-	-	2012

Electoral results

2012

The 2012 legislative election, a future event, will result in the election of the very first National Assembly members representing French residents overseas.

In April 2011, the ruling Union for a Popular Movement chose several prominent members to stand as candidates overseas. Thus, Christine Lagarde, Minister of Finance, was chosen as UPM candidate for the First constituency; Éric Besson, Minister of Industry, for the Fifth; and Thierry Mariani, Secretary of State for Transport, for the Eleventh.^[8]

By contrast, the Socialist Party has preferred to select long-term residents of their respective constituencies, who are active in their local community but generally unknown in national French politics.^[9]

External link

• Official map of the eleven constituencies (French Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs)

References

1. ^ "Elections 2012 - Votez à l’étranger", French Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs
2. ^ "La représentation des Français établis hors de France", French Senate
3. ^ "Redécoupage électoral - 11 députés pour les Français de l'étranger", Le Petit Journal, October 22, 2009
4. ^ "Députés de l'étranger: comment ça marche?", L'Express, October 15, 2009
5. ^ "La couleur politique des nouvelles circonscriptions des Français à l'étranger", Le Monde, September 26, 2009
6. ^ "Redécoupage électoral - 11 députés pour les Français de l'étranger", Le Petit Journal, October 22, 2009
7. ^ "Les élections en 2012 à l’étranger: Votre circonscription pour l’élection des députés", French Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs
8. ^ "Législatives : l'UMP a désigné ses candidats pour l'étranger", Le Figaro, April 13, 2011
9. ^ "Elections législatives 2012 : nos candidates et candidats", Parti Socialiste - Fédération des Français à l'Etranger