- Title: France's Fifth Republic - too much power in the presidency?
- Date: 18th April 2017
- Summary: PARIS, FRANCE (FILE - APRIL 21, 2002) (ORIGINALLY 4:3) (REUTERS) FRENCH TELEVISION TF1 COUNTDOWN 3, 2, 1 AND TELEVISION SCREEN SHOWING CHIRAC AND NATIONAL FRONT LEADER JEAN-MARIE LE PEN PROGRESSING TO SECOND ROUND WOMAN SHAKING HEAD
- Embargoed: 2nd May 2017 20:27
- Keywords: Charles de Gaulle Georges Pompidou Valery Giscard d'Estaing Francois Mitterand Jacques Chirac Nicolas Sarkozy Francois Hollande
- Location: VARIOUS LOCATIONS, FRANCE / ALGIERS, ALGERIA
- City: VARIOUS LOCATIONS, FRANCE / ALGIERS, ALGERIA
- Country: France
- Topics: Government/Politics,Elections/Voting
- Reuters ID: LVA0096CYJSCN
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text:EDITORS PLEASE NOTE: THIS EDIT CONTAINS MATERIAL WHICH WAS ORIGINALLY 4:3
Leftist candidates Jean-Luc Melenchon and Benoit Hamon have campaigned on the promise of a Sixth Republic, to replace France's 58-year-old Fifth Republic. Melenchon and Hamon say the constitution must be reformed and the electorate must have more say in national policies.
Charles de Gaulle
France's Fifth Republic was established in 1958, with General Charles de Gaulle as its first president.
A constitutional referendum in 1958 replaced an unstable parliamentary system and its shaky coalitions with a system wherein the president ran the country with an appointed prime minister who oversaw the government.
The successes of De Gaulle's presidency were marked by his own personality. He was imperious, severe and disciplined. He ended the Algerian war, which weighed down the parliamentary system, by granting independence to the French colony despite widespread and violent opposition.
In May 1968, he faced down a massive protest movement, where students demanded greater social liberties and economic reforms.
Georges Pompidou
Pompidou, who served as De Gaulle's prime minister, became president in 1969.
He pursued ambitious projects such as TGV high-speed trains and nuclear development.
He modernised the capital, with the building of the Beaubourg modern art museum eventually named after him, and the Montparnasse Tower.
Pompidou died while in office in 1974.
Valerie Giscard d'Estaing
Valerie Giscard d'Estaing came to power in 1974, and battled an economic downturn after three decades of economic boom and the oil crisis of 1973.
The centrist's presidency was marked by liberal-leaning legislation, such as the legalisation of abortion and divorce.
He faced opposition from a resurgent right-wing led by Jacques Chirac and a unifying left led by Francois Mitterrand.
Francois Mitterrand
Mitterrand, who served two terms from 1981 to 1995, was France's first Socialist president.
He instituted key social programmes such as early retirement, a shorter working week, a fifth week of paid holiday for all workers and a statutory minimum wage. He increased access to health insurance, housing allocation and assistance to families.
After the Socialists' defeat in 1986, Mitterrand was forced to share power with a Conservative government for two years with Jacques Chirac as Prime Minister.
Mitterrand was committed to the European Economic Community, supporting its enlargement with new members Spain and Portugal. Finding a partner in Chancellor Helmut Kohl, Mitterrand also backed Germany's reunification.
Jacques Chirac
Chirac, who served two terms from 1995 to 2007, devoted much of his presidency to defending France's role as a great nation on the world stage - a worldview he consecrated by opposing the invasion of Iraq at the U.N. Security Council in 2003.
He ended compulsory military service and started moves that reintegrated France into the NATO defence alliance, reversing a policy set in the 1960s.
Chirac was re-elected in 2002 after a second round run-off with far-right candidate Jean-Marie Le Pen. But many observers say the landslide victory in that election was more a vote against Le Pen than a resounding vote of confidence for Chirac.
Nicolas Sarkozy
Nicolas Sarkozy inherited the presidency from Chirac in 2007. To his supporters on the centre-right, he was a decisive, incisive leader and statesman who shepherded France through crisis and war. To his critics, he was a micro-managing control freak whose authoritarian style has divided and damaged French society.
Controversy and more than one scandal dogged the president throughout his term, maintaining pressure on Sarkozy's ratings, which for most of his mandate were close to the lowest levels ever seen by a French president in office.
His government also maintained tense relations with the country's substantial Muslim population - an estimated 6 million people in France come from North Africa.
The introduction of a highly controversial law banning the wearing of burqas and full Islamic veils in public places was called discriminatory by some critics.
The sense of unease about how France deals with foreigners was further emphasised by a controversy in 2010 when Sarkozy's government decided to expel hundreds of Roma people and send them back to Romania - a fellow member of the European Union.
Political science expert Alain Garrigou said Sarkozy's presidency concentrated too much power in the presidency. He took charge of most areas of government, sidelining his Prime Minister Francois Fillon.
Francois Hollande
Francois Hollande will leave the Elysee Palace as France's most unpopular leader in polling history.
His victory in 2012 was also depicted as a vote against the equally unpopular Sarkozy, rather than a wholehearted vote for Hollande.
He ran with a more typical left-wing campaign of targeting big businesses and pledging to raise taxes for high earners. But with a record-breaking two months, Garrigou said, his popularity began to decline.
He was seen as lacking leadership and flip-flopping on key issues, particularly tax reform, which dismayed many on the left. His popularity has been undermined by stubbornly high unemployment and anemic economic growth.
Grassroots supporters were further alienated by a pro-business switch in 2014.
After the 2015 attacks in Paris that killed 130 people, Hollande pushed for a symbolic move to strip dual citizens of French nationality in terrorism cases, further costing him political capital.
A labour law that was meant to stimulate the economy brought thousands out onto the streets in protests in early 2016.
In the 2017 election campaign, polls show that the left-wing Socialists and right-wing Republicans could be eliminated after the first round of elections on April 23. Centrist Emmanuel Macron and far-right leader Marine Le Pen could go on to the knockout round, a possible reflection of voters' disillusionment with traditional parties, which for many can no longer be distinguished from each other. - Copyright Holder: FILE REUTERS (CAN SELL)
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