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2027 French presidential election

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Presidential elections are scheduled to be held in France on 18 April 2027, with a second round on 2 May if no candidate secures a majority vote. The election may be held earlier under exceptional circumstances if the presidency falls vacant before then.

Quick facts
2027 French presidential election
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18 April 2027
2032 →
Opinion polls
Incumbent President

Emmanuel Macron
RE


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Incumbent president Emmanuel Macron is ineligible to stand, as the French constitution limits presidents to two consecutive terms.

Background

See also: 2024–2025 French political crisis

The dissolution of the National Assembly announced by Emmanuel Macron following the 2024 European election triggered a period of political instability.[1] Michel Barnier and François Bayrou were each ousted in confidence votes, in December 2024 and September 2025, and Sébastien Lecornu became prime minister. [2][3][4]

In March 2025, Marine Le Pen, a declared candidate for the National Rally, was found guilty of embezzlement of European Parliament funds and sentenced at first instance to five years of ineligibility with immediate effect, preventing her from running in upcoming elections.[5][6] On 7 July 2026, the Court of Appeal of Paris upheld her conviction but reduced her ineligibility sentence to 45 months, 30 of them suspended, and ordered one year under electronic monitoring, clearing the way for her candidacy.[7][8] Following the ruling, Le Pen said she would run and appeal to the Court of Cassation,[9] which is expected to rule by early January 2027 at the latest.[10]

The left-wing New Popular Front alliance formed in 2024 broke apart over strategic disagreements, particularly between the Socialist Party and La France Insoumise.[11] A planned unitary primary was abandoned over the summer of 2026,[12] and the Socialist Party, Place Publique and the Republican and Socialist Left instead held their own primary on 11 October, which Raphaël Glucksmann won in the first round.[13] Jean-Luc Mélenchon (LFI) and Fabien Roussel (PCF) are running separately.[14][15]

On the right, The Republicans' members voted on 19 April 2026 to back Bruno Retailleau directly rather than hold a primary; Laurent Wauquiez then withdrew his bid and David Lisnard left the party,[16] while Xavier Bertrand plans to run as an independent.[17] In the centre, Édouard Philippe (Horizons) and Gabriel Attal (Renaissance) are both running, amid fears that their rivalry could leave the two run-off places to the far right and far left.[18]

The number of declared or presumed candidates is unprecedented in the Fifth Republic,[19] with projections of 17 or more candidates against the record of 16 set in 2002.[20] Political scientist Bruno Jeanbart attributes this to "the fragmentation of the political landscape and the decline of the party system" that began in 2017.[19] Political scientists Antoine Bristielle and Élie Michel see it as a symptom of a deep crisis of representation, with parties struggling to fulfill their role in selecting candidates and personal ambitions breaking free from the party framework.[21]

Electoral system

The president of the French Republic is elected to a five-year term under the two-round system as stipulated in Article 7 of the French constitution. If no candidate secures an absolute majority (50% + 1) of votes in the first round, a second round is held two weeks later between the two candidates who received the most votes.[22] Per the constitution, the first round of the presidential election must be held between 20 and 35 days before the conclusion of the president's current five-year term. Emmanuel Macron's second term, which began on 14 May 2022, is scheduled to end on 13 May 2027, meaning that the first round of the presidential election is scheduled to be held between 8 and 23 April 2027.[23]

To be listed on the first-round ballot, candidates must secure 500 signatures (often referred to as parrainages) from national or local elected officials from at least 30 different departments or overseas collectivities, with no more than a tenth of these signatories from any single department.[24] According to the Article 6 of the French constitution, the president cannot "exercise more than two consecutive periods in office".[25]

Declared candidates

National Rally

Horizons

The Republicans

On 19 April 2026, The Republicans held an internal vote among party members on whether to organise a primary election or directly endorse party president Bruno Retailleau's candidacy, with more than 73% voting in favour of backing Retailleau outright.[28] Prior to the vote, three other figures (Xavier Bertrand, David Lisnard, and Laurent Wauquiez) had declared their intention to run in a primary. Since Retailleau secured the party's endorsement, Wauquiez withdrew his bid, Lisnard left the party,[16] and Bertrand is running as an independent candidate.[17]

Renaissance

Socialist Party and Place Publique

Main article: 2026 French Socialist Party presidential primary

On 11 October 2026, a primary involving voters from the Socialist Party, Place Publique, and the Republican and Socialist Left selected Raphaël Glucksmann as their joint candidate for the 2027 presidential election, with 66.13% of the vote over Olivier Faure, Ségolène Royal, Emmanuel Maurel and Jérôme Guedj.[32]

La France Insoumise

United Left

Main article: 2026 United Left primary

The United Left primary was a planned primary election which aimed to select a joint candidate for the presidential election from The Ecologists, L'Après, Debout!, Génération.s, and other left-wing parties.[35] The primary election was eventually abandoned before voting occurred. Both declared candidates of the primary have announced their intention to run as separate candidates.

Reconquête

French Communist Party

Others

Potential candidates

The Republicans

Renaissance

Socialist Party

Others

Declined to be candidates

Far-left

Centre-left and left-wing

Centre

Centre-right and right-wing

Far-right

Independent

Endorsements

Raphaël Glucksmann
Marine Le Pen
Party leaders
International figures
Jean-Luc Mélenchon
National figures
Édouard Philippe
Bruno Retailleau
Éric Zemmour

Opinion polling

Main article: Opinion polling for the 2027 French presidential election
Local regression of polls conducted between the 2022 and 2027 Presidential elections.
Local regression of polls conducted since September 2024.

See also

Notes

  1. [a]
    Although Glucksmann is a member of Place Publique, he participated in the joint Socialist Party–Place Publique primary, which selected him as the parties' common presidential candidate.

References

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