The presidential election is by far the most important electoral contest in the Fifth Republic. The second-round run-off in 2022 was a replay of 2017, with the incumbent Emmanuel Macron up against Marine Le Pen. In spite of Macron’s victory, it was a significantly closer contest than five years ago. Two other notable elements of contrast with 2017 have been a new element of competition within the radical Right between Le Pen and Eric Zemmour and the catastrophic collapse in the vote share of the mainstream party of the Right, Les Républicains. On the Left, the decline of the Socialist party and the dominance of Jean-Luc Mélenchon have been further confirmed. Political competition in France now seems to be dominated by three poles: radical right, radical left and Macron’s centrist force respectively. This paper focuses on selected aspects of the 2022 presidential election including analysis of the results and evaluation of the campaign. It will look back at key events in Macron’s presidential term, as well as look forward to the upcoming parliamentary election at which the incoming President will seek to win a parliamentary majority for their reforms over the five years ahead.

Raymond Kuhn is Emeritus Professor of Politics in the School of Politics and International Relations at Queen Mary University of London. He has published widely on French politics and political communication and has edited several special issues on French elections.