Record Voter Turnout in French Legislative Elections
The recent legislative elections in France have witnessed a notable increase in voter participation, particularly during the first round. At noon this Sunday, the participation rate stood at 12.77% in Seine-Saint-Denis, compared to 17.93% a week ago. This makes Seine-Saint-Denis the department of Île-de-France with the lowest turnout at this time, trailing behind Val-de-Marne (17.07%), Hauts-de-Seine (18.72%), Essonne (20.01%), Val-d'Oise (20.42%), Seine-et-Marne (21.01%), and Paris (22.03%).
Last Sunday, 60.62% of voters in Seine-Saint-Denis went to the polls, significantly higher than the 38.93% turnout during the first round of the last legislative elections in June 2022. The reduced turnout this time can partly be attributed to the fact that six outgoing left-wing deputies were re-elected in the first round. These include Éric Coquerel (LFI), Stéphane Peu (PCF), Bastien Lachaud (LFI), Aurélie Trouvé (LFI), Nadège Abomangoli (LFI), and Clémentine Autain (LFI).
National Voter Participation Trends
Nationally, the participation rate reached 26.63% at noon, according to the Ministry of the Interior. This marks a 7.64-point increase from the second round of legislative elections in 2022 (18.99%) and a 0.73-point increase from last week at the same time (25.90%). This surge in voter engagement follows the announcement of the dissolution of the National Assembly by President Emmanuel Macron on June 9, which led to the establishment of over 3.2 million proxies, four times higher than two years ago.
In specific regions, Bouches-du-Rhône saw a particularly high turnout this morning at 34.59%, followed by Corrèze (33.88%) and Cantal (33.48%). Conversely, the Île-de-France departments, including Seine-Saint-Denis, Val-de-Marne, and Hauts-de-Seine, reported lower turnout rates.
