Country name:
conventional long form: French Republic
conventional short form: France
local long form: Republique Francaise
local short form: France
Government type:
republic
Capital:
Paris
Administrative divisions:
22 regions (regions, singular - region); Alsace, Aquitaine,
Auvergne, Basse-Normandie, Bourgogne, Bretagne, Centre,
Champagne-Ardenne, Corse, Franche-Comte, Haute-Normandie,
Ile-de-France, Languedoc-Roussillon, Limousin, Lorraine,
Midi-Pyrenees, Nord-Pas-de-Calais, Pays de la Loire, Picardie,
Poitou-Charentes, Provence-Alpes-Cote d'Azur, Rhone-Alpes
note: metropolitan France is divided into 22 regions (including the
"territorial collectivity" of Corse or Corsica) and is subdivided
into 96 departments; see separate entries for the overseas
departments (French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Reunion) and the
overseas territorial collectivities (Mayotte, Saint Pierre and
Miquelon)
Dependent areas:
Bassas da India, Clipperton Island, Europa Island, French
Polynesia, French Southern and Antarctic Lands, Glorioso Islands,
Juan de Nova Island, New Caledonia, Tromelin Island, Wallis and
Futuna
note: the US does not recognize claims to Antarctica
Independence:
486 (unified by Clovis)
National holiday:
Bastille Day, 14 July (1789)
Constitution:
28 September 1958, amended concerning election of president in
1962, amended to comply with provisions of 1992 EC Maastricht
Treaty, 1996 Amsterdam Treaty, 2000 Treaty of Nice; amended to
tighten immigration laws 1993
Legal system:
civil law system with indigenous concepts; review of administrative
but not legislative acts
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC (since 17 May 1995)
head of government: Prime Minister Jean-Pierre RAFFARIN (since 7 May
2002)
elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term
(changed from seven-year term in 2001); election last held 21 April
and 5 May 2002 (next to be held, first round NA April 2007, second
round NA May 2007); prime minister nominated by the National
Assembly majority and appointed by the president
election results: Jacques CHIRAC reelected president; percent of
vote, second ballot - Jacques CHIRAC (RPR) 81.96%, Jean-Marie LE PEN
(FN) 18.04%
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the
suggestion of the prime minister
Legislative branch:
bicameral Parliament or Parlement consists of the Senate or Senat
(321 seats - 296 for metropolitan France, 13 for overseas
departments and territories, and 12 for French nationals abroad;
members are indirectly elected by an electoral college to serve
nine-year terms; elected by thirds every three years) and the
National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (577 seats; members are
elected by popular vote under a single-member majoritarian system to
serve five-year terms)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by
party - RPR 83, PS 68, UDF 37, DL 35, RDES 16, PCF 16, other 66;
National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party -
UMP 355, PS 140, UDF 29, PCF 21, Radical Party 7, Greens 3, other 22
elections: Senate - last held 23 September 2001 (next to be held NA
September 2004); National Assembly - last held 8-16 June 2002 (next
to be held NA June 2007)
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court of Appeals or Cour de Cassation (judges are appointed
by the president from nominations of the High Council of the
Judiciary); Constitutional Council or Conseil Constitutionnel (three
members appointed by the president, three appointed by the president
of the National Assembly, and three appointed by the president of
the Senate); Council of State or Conseil d'Etat
Political parties and leaders:
Citizen and Republican Movement or MCR [Jean Pierre CHEVENEMENT];
Democratic and European Social Rally or RDSE (mainly RAD and PRG)
[leader NA]; French Communist Party or PCF [Marie-George BUFFET];
Left Radical Party or PRG (previously Radical Socialist Party or PRS
and the Left Radical Movement or MRG) [Jean-Michel BAYLET]; Liberal
Democracy or DL (originally Republican Party or PR; now merged into
the UMP) [Alain MADELIN]; Movement for France or MPF [Philippe DE
VILLIERS]; Rally for France or RPF [Charles PASQUA]; Rally for the
Republic or RPR (merged into UMP) [Serge LEPELTIER]; Socialist Party
or PS [Francois HOLLANDE]; Greens [Martine BILLARD, Denis BAUPIN,
Stephane POCRAIN, Maryse ARDITI]; Union for French Democracy or UDF
(coalition of DL, CDS, UDF, RP, and other parties) [Francois
BAYROU]; Union for a Popular Movement or UMP (including RPR, DL, and
a part of UDF) [Alain JUPPE]
Political pressure groups and leaders:
historically-Communist labor union (Confederation Generale du
Travail) or CGT, approximately 700,000 members (claimed);
left-leaning labor union (Confederation Francaise Democratique du
Travail) or CFDT, approximately 865,000 members (claimed, of which
810,000 are actively employed); independent labor union
(Confederation Generale du Travail - Force Ouvriere) or FO, 300,000
members (est.); independent white-collar union (Confederation
Generale des Cadres) or CGC, 196,000 members (claimed); employers'
union (Mouvement des Entreprises de France) or MEDEF, 750,000
companies as members (claimed)
International organization participation:
ACCT, AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BDEAC, BIS, BSEC (observer), CDB
(non-regional), CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECA (associate), ECE, ECLAC,
EIB, EMU, ESA, ESCAP, EU, FAO, G- 5, G- 7, G- 8, G-10, IADB, IAEA,
IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO,
ILO, IMF, IMO, InOC, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MINURSO, MIPONUH,
MONUC, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW,
OSCE, PCA, SPC, UN, UN Security Council, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR,
UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOVIC,
UNOMIG, UNRWA, UNTSO, UNU, UPU, WADB (nonregional), WCL, WCO, WEU,
WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Jean-David LEVITTE
chancery: 4101 Reservoir Road NW, Washington, DC 20007
FAX: [1] (202) 944-6166
consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los
Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, and San Francisco
telephone: [1] (202) 944-6000
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Howard H. LEACH
embassy: 2 Avenue Gabriel, 75382 Paris Cedex 08
mailing address: PSC 116, APO AE 09777
telephone: [33] (1) 43-12-22-22
FAX: [33] (1) 42 66 97 83
consulate(s) general: Marseille, Strasbourg
Flag description:
three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), white, and red;
known as the French Tricouleur (Tricolor); the design and/or colors
are similar to a number of other flags, including those of Belgium,
Chad, Ireland, Cote d'Ivoire, Luxembourg, and Netherlands; the
official flag for all French dependent areas