French legislative elections to elect the 16th legislature of the French Third Republic

French Third Republic

The French Third Republic was the republican government of France from 1870, when the Second French Empire collapsed due to the French defeat in the Franco-Prussian War, to 1940, when France was overrun by Nazi Germany during World War II, resulting in the German and Italian occupations of France...

 were held on 26 April and 3 May 1936. This was the last legislature of the Third Republic and the last election before the Second World War. The number of candidates set a record, with 4,807 people vying for 618 seats in the Chamber of Deputies

Chamber of Deputies of France

Chamber of Deputies was the name given to several parliamentary bodies in France in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries:* 1814–1848 during the Bourbon Restoration and the July Monarchy, the Chamber of Deputies was the Lower chamber of the French Parliament, elected by census suffrage.*...

. In the Seine Department alone, there were 1,402 candidates.

The Popular Front

Popular Front (France)

The Popular Front was an alliance of left-wing movements, including the French Communist Party , the French Section of the Workers' International and the Radical and Socialist Party, during the interwar period...

, composed of the French Section of the Workers' International (SFIO), the Radical-Socialists

Left Radical Party

The Radical Party of the Left is a minor social-liberal, and in opposition to its common understanding of its name, a moderate centre-left political party in France advocating radicalism, secularism to its french extend known as laïcité, progressivism, pro-Europeanism, individual freedom and...

, the French Section of the Communist International

French Communist Party

The French Communist Party is a political party in France which advocates the principles of communism.Although its electoral support has declined in recent decades, the PCF retains a large membership, behind only that of the Union for a Popular Movement , and considerable influence in French...

 (SFIC), and miscellaneous leftists, won power. Léon Blum

Léon Blum

André Léon Blum was a French politician, usually identified with the moderate left, and three times the Prime Minister of France.-First political experiences:...

 became President of the Council.

For the first time, the Radical-Socialists were eclipsed on the left by the SFIO, while still keeping a considerable role in French politics.

Regional results

• The SFIC, predecessor of the Communist Party
  French Communist Party
  The French Communist Party is a political party in France which advocates the principles of communism.Although its electoral support has declined in recent decades, the PCF retains a large membership, behind only that of the Union for a Popular Movement , and considerable influence in French...
  
  , doubled its score from 11 SFIC and 9 Union Ouvrière deputies in 1932 to 72 in 1936. The party made gains in industrialized suburbs and working-class areas of major cities. They also progressed in rural central and southwestern France (e.g., Dordogne
  Dordogne
  Dordogne is a départment in south-west France. The départment is located in the region of Aquitaine, between the Loire valley and the High Pyrénées named after the great river Dordogne that runs through it...
  
  , Lot-et-Garonne)

• The Radicals lost votes to the SFIO and SFIC, but also to the right.

• The SFIO declined slightly. In working-class suburbs, the party declined, but it gained votes in Brittany
  Brittany
  Brittany is a cultural and administrative region in the north-west of France. Previously a kingdom and then a duchy, Brittany was united to the Kingdom of France in 1532 as a province. Brittany has also been referred to as Less, Lesser or Little Britain...
  
  , to the dismay of the right.

• Only 174 seats were elected in the first round, 424 were decided in a run-off. The right fared better in the second round.

Parliamentary Groups

Affiliation	Party		Seats
Left Left-wing politics In politics, Left, left-wing and leftist generally refer to support for social change to create a more egalitarian society...
		French Communist Party French Communist Party The French Communist Party is a political party in France which advocates the principles of communism.Although its electoral support has declined in recent decades, the PCF retains a large membership, behind only that of the Union for a Popular Movement , and considerable influence in French...  (PCF)	72
		Party of Proletarian Unity Party of Proletarian Unity The Party of Proletarian Unity was a French socialist political party.-History:It was formed on December 21, 1930 by leftists expelled from the French Communist Party , together with some who had previously belonged to the left-wing of the Section française de l'Internationale ouvrière...  (PUP)	6
		French Section of the Workers' International (SFIO)	149
		Socialist Republican Union Socialist Republican Union The ' was a political party in France founded in 1935 during the late Third Republic which united the right-wing of the French Section of the Workers' International.The USR was founded by the following parties:*Socialist Party of France-Jean Jaurès Union...  (USR)	29
Centre-Left
		Republican, Radical and Radical-Socialist Party (PRRRS)	110
		Radical-Socialist Party Camille Pelletan Radical-Socialist Party Camille Pelletan The ' was a social liberal party in France founded in 1934 at the Clermont-Ferrand Congress of the Radical-Socialist Party as a reaction to the participation of Radicals in the right-wing Gaston Doumergue cabinet. The PRS-CP was led by Gabriel Cudenet but never achieved any lasting success. In...  (PRS-CP)	3
		Frontist Party	2
		Party of the Young Republic (PJR)	4
		Independent Left	11
Centre-Right
		Democratic and Independent Radical Left Radical Left (France) The Radical Left was a French parliamentary group in the Chamber of Deputies of France during the French Third Republic. The Radical Left was formed by members of the Independent Radicals....	39
		Alliance of Left Republicans and Independent Radicals Democratic Republican Alliance The Democratic Republican Alliance was a French political party created in 1901 by followers of Léon Gambetta, such as Raymond Poincaré who would be president of the Council in the 1920s...	43
		Independents of Popular Action Independents of Popular Action The Independents of Popular Action was a French parliamentary group in the 16th Chamber of Deputies of France during the French Third Republic between 1936 and 1940...	16
		Popular Democrats Popular Democratic Party (France) The Popular Democratic Party was a non-confessional Christian democratic party in France during the Third Republic. Founded in 1924, it represented the trend of advanced French social Catholicism, while remaining a party embodying the ideology of centrism....	13
Right Right-wing politics In politics, Right, right-wing and rightist generally refer to support for a hierarchical society justified on the basis of an appeal to natural law or tradition. To varying degrees, the Right rejects the egalitarian objectives of left-wing politics, claiming that the imposition of equality is...
		Independent Republicans of Social Action Independent Republicans The Independent Republicans were a French liberal-conservative political group founded in 1962, which became a political party in 1966 . The leader was Valéry Giscard d'Estaing....  and Agrarian Group	40
		Republican Federation Republican Federation The Republican Federation was the largest conservative party during the French Third Republic, gathering together the liberal Orleanists rallied to the Republic. Founded in November 1903, it rivalized with the more secular and centrist Alliance démocratique...  and Independents of the National and Republican Union Republican Federation The Republican Federation was the largest conservative party during the French Third Republic, gathering together the liberal Orleanists rallied to the Republic. Founded in November 1903, it rivalized with the more secular and centrist Alliance démocratique...	60
		Republican Independents Republican Independents The Independents and later Republican Independents was a French parliamentary group in the Chamber of Deputies of France during the French Third Republic between 1928 and 1940. The IR was composed of the most conservative members of the legislature, to the right of the Republican Federation...	13
Total			610