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Socialist Party (France)
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The Socialist Party (Parti Socialiste, PS) is the largest left-wing political party in France. It replaced the French Section of the Workers' International (SFIO) in 1969.
A social democratic and Democratic Socialist party, it first won power under the Fifth Republic with François Mitterrand's victory at the 1981 presidential election. It also won, as part of a coalition, a majority in the National Assembly for the first time. From 1986 to 1988, Jacques Chirac was prime minister during the first cohabitation. A second took place in 1993, when Mitterrand appointed Édouard Balladur as prime minister. The 1995 presidential election was won by Chirac against PS leader Lionel Jospin, putting an end to Mitterrand's 14 years of power. However, the third cohabitation took place when the socialists won the 1997 legislative elections, and Chirac appointed Lionel Jospin as prime minister, a position he held until April 21, 2002, in the presidential election.
The party's candidate for the 2007 presidential election, Ségolène Royal, was defeated by Nicolas Sarkozy by about 53% to 47%.
HistoryFrench socialism until 1969 After the failure of the Paris commune (1871), French socialism was figuratively beheaded. Its leaders were killed or exiled. France's first socialist party, the Federation of the Socialist Workers of France (Fédération des travailleurs socialistes de France or FTSF), was founded in 1879. It was characterised as "possibilist" because it promoted gradual reforms. Two parties split off from it: in 1882, the French Workers' Party (Parti ouvrier français or POF) of Jules Guesde and Paul Lafargue (the son-in-law of Karl Marx), then in 1890 the Revolutionary Socialist Workers Party (Parti ouvrier socialiste révolutionnaire or POSR) of Jean Allemane. At the same time, the heirs of Louis Auguste Blanqui, a symbol of the French revolutionary tradition, created the Central Revolutionary Committee (Comité révolutionnaire central or CRC) led by Edouard Vaillant. There were also some declared socialist deputies such as Alexandre Millerand and Jean Jaurès who did not belong to any party.
In 1899, the participation of Millerand in Pierre Waldeck-Rousseau's cabinet caused a debate about socialist participation in a "bourgeois government". Three years later, Jaurès, Allemane and the possibilists founded the French Socialist Party while Guesde and Vaillant formed the Socialist Party of France. Then, in 1905, during the Globe Congress, the two groups merged in the French Section of the Workers International (Section française de l'Internationale ouvrière or SFIO). Jaurès became the party leader.
The party was hemmed in between the middle class liberals of the Radical Party and the revolutionary syndicalists who dominated the trade unions. Together with the Radicals, who wished to separate Church and State, it participated in the "Block of Lefts" (Bloc des Gauches). In 1906, the General Confederation of Labour claimed its independence.
The French socialists were strongly anti-war, but following the assassination of Jaurès in 1914 they were unable to resist the wave of militarism which followed the outbreak of World War I. They suffered a severe split over participation in the wartime government of national unity. In 1919 the anti-war socialists were heavily defeated in elections. In 1920, during the Tours Congress, the majority and left wing of the party broke away and formed the French Section of the Communist International (Section française de l'Internationale Communiste or SFIC) to join the Third International founded by Lenin. The right wing, led by Léon Blum, kept the "old house" and remained in the SFIO.
In 1924 and in 1932, the Socialists joined with the Radicals in the Coalitions of the Left (Cartels des Gauches), but refused to join the non-Socialist governments led by the Radicals Edouard Herriot and Edouard Daladier. These governments failed because the Socialists and the Radicals could not agree on economic policy, and also because the Communists, following the policy laid down by the Soviet Union, refused to support "bourgeois" governments.
In 1934, the Communists changed their line, and the three parties came together in the Popular Front, which won the 1936 elections and brought Blum to power as France's first Socialist Prime Minister. Indeed, for the first time of its history, the SFIO obtained more votes and seats than the Radical Party. Within a year, however, his government collapsed over economic policy and also over the issue of the Spanish Civil War. The demoralised left fell apart and was unable to resist the collapse of the French republic after the military defeat of 1940.
After the liberation of France in 1944, the SFIO re-emerged in a coalition with a powerful Communist Party (which became the main left-wing party) and the Christian Democratic MRP. This alliance did not survive the Cold War. Blum proposed the construction of a Third Force with the center-left and the center-right, against the Gaullists and the Communists. However, his candidate to lead of the SFIO, Daniel Mayer, was defeated by Guy Mollet.
Mollet was supported by the left wing of the party. Paradoxically, he spoke a Marxist language without questioning the alliance with the center and the center-right. He was Prime Minister at the head of a minority government in 1956. But the party was in decline, as were the Radicals, and the left never came close to forming a united front. Indeed, this led Mollet to assert, "the Communist Party is not on the left, but in the East". The repressive policy of Mollet in the Algerian War and his support for Charles de Gaulle's come-back in 1958 caused a split and the foundation of the Unified Socialist Party (Parti socialiste unifié or PSU). The SFIO returned to opposition in 1959; it reached its lowest ebb in the 1960s.
Both because of its opposition to the principle of presidential election by universal suffrage and because De Gaulle's re-election appeared inevitable, the SFIO did not nominate a candidate for the 1965 election. Consequently, it supported the candidacy of François Mitterrand, a former minister of the Fourth Republic who had been a conservative, then a leftist independent. He was resolutely anti-Gaullist. He obtained a good result and faced De Gaulle in an unexpected second ballot, becoming the leader of the non-Communist left.
In order to exist between the Communist Party, leading the left, and the Gaullist Party, leading the country, the SFIO, Radicals, and left-wing republican groups created the Federation of the Democratic and Socialist Left under Mitterrand's leadership. But unable to benefit from the May 1968 events, it exploded after its disastrous defeat at the June 1968 legislative elections. One year later, the SFIO candidate Gaston Defferre was eliminated in the first round of the 1969 presidential election, with only 5% of votes.
The foundation of the PS and the "Union of Left" (1969-1981)In 1969, during the Alfortville Congress, the SFIO was replaced by the Socialist Party (Parti socialiste or PS). It was joined by pro-Pierre Mendès-France clubs and left-wing republican groups. During the Issy-les-Moulineaux Congress, Alain Savary was elected First Secretary with the support of his predecessor Guy Mollet. He proposed an "ideological dialogue" with the Communists.
Two years later, during the Epinay Congress, pro-François Mitterrand clubs, joined the party. Mitterrand defeated the Savary-Mollet duo by proposing an electoral programme with the Communists. In 1972, the Common Programme was signed with the PCF and Leftwing Radicals. The left, and notably the Socialist Party, experienced an electoral recovery at the 1973 legislative election. Candidate of the left-wing alliance, Mitterrand came close to winning the 1974 presidential election. Indeed, he obtained 49.2% of votes in the second round.
At the end of 1974, some PSU members, included leader Michel Rocard, re-joined the PS. They represented the "left-wing Christian" and non-Marxist group. The most conservative members of the PS, they advocated an alignment of French socialism along European Social-Democratic lines, that is, a clear acceptance of the market economy. While the "Union of the Left" triumphed at the 1977 municipal election, the electoral rise of the PS worried the Communist Party. The two parties failed to update the Common Programme and the PCF leader Georges Marchais denounced a "turn towards the Right" of the PS.
In spite of positive polls, the "Union of the Left" lost the 1978 legislative election. For the first time since 1936, the Socialists scored better ahead of the Communists, becoming the main left-wing party, but their defeat caused an internal crisis. Mitterand's leadership was challenged by Rocard, who wanted to abandon the Common Programme which he considered archaic and unrealistic. Mitterrand felt that the left could not win without the alliance between the Socialists and the Communists. In 1979, Mitterrand won the Metz Congress, then, despite Rocard's popularity, was chosen as PS candidate for the 1981 presidential election.
Mitterrand's presidency and the exercise of power (1981-1995)In 1981 Mitterrand defeated the incumbent conservative, Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, to become the first socialist of the Fifth Republic to be elected President of France by universal suffrage. He dissolved the National Assembly and, for the first time in their history, the French Socialists won an absolute majority of the seats. This "pink surge" took place to the detriment of the right-wing parliamentary parties, and the Communist Party too.
Mitterrand was the last elected national leader in Europe to attempt to carry out a socialist-inspired agenda (the 110 Propositions), furthering the dirigiste trends of the preceding conservative governments. The Prime Minister Pierre Mauroy nationalised the banks, the insurance industry and the defence industries, in accordance with the 1972 Common Program. Workers' wages were increased and working hours reduced to 39, and many other sweeping reforms carried out, but the economic crisis continued. Reforms included the abolition of death penalty, creation of a solidarity tax on wealth (ISF), introduction of proportional representation in legislative elections (which was applied only at the 1986 election), decentralization of the state (1982-83 laws), repeal of price liberalization for books, etc.
As early as 1982, Mitterrand faced a clear choice between maintaining France's membership in the European Monetary System, and thus the country's commitment to European construction, and pursuing his socialist policies. He chose the former, starting the Socialist Party's acceptance of the market economy. In 1984 Mitterrand and his second Prime Minister, Laurent Fabius, clearly abandoned any further socialist measures. The "Union of Left" died and the Communist ministers resigned.
The PS lost its majority in the French National Assembly in 1986, forcing Mitterrand to "cohabit" with the conservative government of Jacques Chirac. Nevertheless, Mitterrand was re-elected President in 1988 with a moderate programme entitled "United France". He proposed neither nationalisations nor privatisations. He chose as Prime Minister the most popular and moderate of the Socialist politicians, Michel Rocard. His cabinet included 4 center-right ministers but it was supported by only a plurality in the National Assembly elected in June 1988.
During his second term, Mitterrand focused on foreign policy and European construction. He convened a referendum for the ratification of the Maastricht Treaty. He left domestic policy to his prime ministers: Michel Rocard, Edith Cresson and Pierre Bérégovoy. The party was hit by scandals about its financing and weakened by the struggle between the heirs of "Mitterrandism".
In 1990, during the Rennes Congress, the "Mitterrandist group" split between the supporters of Laurent Fabius and the friends of Lionel Jospin. Furthermore, a part of the left-wing of the party, led by Jean-Pierre Chevènement split off due to his opposition to the Gulf War and the Maastricht Treaty. This section created the Citizens' Movement (Mouvement des citoyens or MDC). Finally, many on the left were disappointed by the results of the Socialist governments. At the 1993 legislative election, the PS did poorly, returning to the levels of the SFIO in the 1960s. The Socialist group of the National Assembly numbered 53 deputies against 260 during the previous term.
Rocard became First Secretary of the party, and was considered the "natural candidate" for the next presidential election. He called for a political "big bang": an agreement with the center and the center-right, but his efforts were in vain. One year later, his party obtained only 14% of votes at the European election. Henri Emmanuelli, a "Mitterrandist" left-winger, succeeded him as First Secretary. Jacques Delors, president of the European commission and a favorite according to the polls, declined to be the PS candidate due to the radicalization of the party. Finally, Lionel Jospin, who proposed to "take stock" of Mitterrand's inheritance, was chosen as the party's candidate, but lost to Jacques Chirac.
Jospin and the "Plural Left" (1995-2002)In the legislature, the PS reconstructed a coalition with other left-wing parties: the PCF, the Greens, the Left Radical Party and the MDC. This "Plural Left" (Gauche plurielle) won the 1997 legislative election and Jospin became Prime Minister of the third "cohabitation".
His policy was broadly progressive but had little to do with traditional socialism. The Aubry laws reduced the working time to 35 hours a week. Universal medical insurance was instituted. However, the policy of privatization was pursued.
His coalition dissolved when the MDC leader Jean-Pierre Chevènement resigned from the Cabinet. The Green and Communist allies were weakened by their governmental participation.
The 2002 presidential election was focused on the theme of insecurity. Jospin, again the Socialists' candidate, was eliminated in the first round due to there being too many left-wing candidates who split the vote. He announced his retirement from politics, and the PS called on its supporters to vote for Chirac in order to defeat the National Front leader Jean-Marie Le Pen, who had surprisingly advanced to the run-off. Two months later, the "Plural Left" lost the legislative election.
After the 2002 shockFrançois Hollande, who became First Secretary in 1997, was re-elected in 2003 during the Dijon Congress with the support of the main Socialist personalities, against the left-wing of the party. In the 2004 regional elections, the Socialists had a major comeback. In coalition with the former "Plural Left", they gained power in 20 of the 22 metropolitan regions (all except Alsace and Corsica) and in the four overseas regions. The party benefited from increasing frustration with right-wing parties. However, the Socialist Party has experienced considerable difficulty in formulating an alternative to right-wing policy.
On December 1, 2004, 59% of Socialist Party members approved the proposed European Constitution. However, several well-known members of the Party, including Laurent Fabius, and left-wingers Henri Emmanuelli and Jean-Luc Mélenchon, asked the public for a "no" vote in the 29 May 2005 French referendum on the European Constitution, where the proposed Constitution was rejected. Fabius was ejected from the executive office of the party. The split over the European Constitution, as well as party leaders' competing ambitions to win the presidential nomination in 2007, led the party into considerable disarray.
In November 2005, during the Le Mans Congress, three main groups were present. The majority supported a moderate text and obtained 55%. Fabius's friends ("To Rally the Left") advocated more radical policies and gained 20%. Finally, another faction ("New Socialist Party") claimed it was necessary to renovate the party by proposing left-wing policies and a profound reform of French institutions. It obtained 25% of the vote. Virtually all factions agreed on a common agenda, broadly based on the moderate and pro-European majority's position with some left-wing amendments.
2007 presidential electionsFor the 2007 presidential election, many potential candidates appeared: François Hollande, Laurent Fabius (from the left-wing of the party), Dominique Strauss-Kahn (who claimed to represent "social democracy"), Jack Lang, Martine Aubry and Ségolène Royal, who was favoured according to the polls. Some Socialist leaders asked Jospin to return. He declared he was "available" then finally refused.
On November 16, 2006, the members of the Socialist Party chose Ségolène Royal to be their candidate with a majority of 60%. Her challengers, Strauss-Kahn and Fabius, obtained 21% and 19% respectively.
After obtaining 25.87% of the vote in the first round of France's presidential elections, Royal qualified for the second round of voting but lost with 46.94% to Nicolas Sarkozy on May 6, 2007. Immediately after her defeat several party bosses (notably Strauss-Kahn), held Ségolène Royal personally responsible for the unsuccessful campaign. The party now seems divided between Ségolène Royal who wishes to forge an alliance with the centre party "MoDem"; Bertrand Delanoë who wishes to keep the status quo of the 2007 campaign and come back to the "gauche plurielle"; and Fabius, who has represented the left wing since 2005.
2007 National Assembly electionIn the 10 and 17 June 2007 French National Assembly elections, the party won 186 out of 577 seats, and about 10 affiliated, gain of 40 seats.
LeadershipFirst secretaries from 1969:
Electoral RecordPresidential President of the French Republic| Election year | Candidate | # of 1st round votes | % of 1st round vote | # of 2nd round votes | % of 2nd round vote | | 1974 | François Mitterrand | 11,044,373 | 43.25% | 12,971,604 | 49.19% |
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| 1981 | François Mitterrand | 7,505,960 | 25.86% | 15,708,262 | 51.76% |
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| 1988 | François Mitterrand | 10,381,332 | 34.11% | 16,704,279 | 54.02% |
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| 1995 | Lionel Jospin | 7,098,191 | 23.30% | 15,763,027 | 47.4% |
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| 2002 | Lionel Jospin | 4,610,749 | 16.18% | — | — |
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| 2007 | Ségolène Royal | 9,500,112 | 25.87% | 16,790,440 | 46.94% |
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Legislative French National Assembly| Election year | # of 1st round votes | % of 1st round vote | # of seats | | 1973 | 4,579,888 | 18.9% | 89 |
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| 1978 | 6,451,151 | 22.6% | 103 |
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| 1981 | 9,077,435 | 36.0% | 266 |
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| 1986 | 8,693,939 | 31.0% | 206 |
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| 1988 | 8,493,602 | 34.8% | 260 |
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| 1993 | 4,476,716 | 17.6% | 53 |
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| 1997 | 5,961,612 | 23.5% | 246 |
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| 2002 | 6,086,599 | 24.1% | 141 |
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| 2007 | 6,436,136 | 24.7% | 186 |
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European Parliament
See also- History of France
- Socialism
- French Section of the Workers' International (SFIO), the ancestor of the PS
- Workers and Peasants Socialist Party
External links - Official site
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