Deputies and the National Assembly are victims of universal disinterest

Would legislative elections become a secondary term in the eyes of the French in a democratic life? If this end of the campaign has led to the politicization of voting stakes in the wake of a duel between Nuppe and the ensemble, it hides, under the Trump-L’Oel effect, a more distant relationship with the National Assembly. The record restraint observed in the first round (52.49%) on Sunday, June 12, testifies to the deep dissatisfaction with the national representation, the continuity of this crisis, which erupts in the institutions of the V.^E Republic.

On the ground, MPs who are rarely recognized by fellow citizens often show ignorance of their function. In November 2021, a survey conducted by the Jean Jauré Foundation found that only 44% of French people have confidence in their National Assembly, a figure that has been stable for several years. And that 59% of them continue to favor the institution. A significant drop from the 80% measured in the same study in 1985.

However, without a majority – absolute or even relative – the president of the republic can not impose his will on national policy. Once this myth is deconstructed, according to which the head of the executive will have the right to decide everything, alone, at any time, democratic deinvestment is just a symptom of a fundamental movement related to a breach of trust.

Distortion mechanics

It is no longer a secret. Political science has shown a clear correlation between the voting system and participation in elections. Especially in the Nordic countries, legislative elections remain one of the most mobilized polls (around 80%). In our European neighbors, power is exercised more collectively through mixed or proportional elections, leading to coalitions, reviving political pluralism in the chambers of parliament.

Because this is indeed one of the first reasons for the lack of participation in legislative elections, the majoritarian voting system stifles individual expression of varying sensitivities. What good is a web site if it simply “blends in” with everything else out there?

In addition, part of the electorate’s lack of interest in the political game has reached its peak after a two-year health crisis, a sense of war and decline in Ukraine, which is still gaining a little more public opinion. Added to this was the restructuring of various political camps into three blocs after the presidential election. For the uninitiated, the identification of the hidden faces behind these new neutralized labels – Ensemble !, Renaissance, Horizons, Nupes, Reconquête !, and even Rassemblement National – is not obvious.