Valérie Pécresse is a surprise choice as the centre-right candidate for next year's French presidential election.
Category: France
Two French anniversaries
France commemorates two atrocities with differing political implications: an assassination last year and a massacre sixty years ago.
France, six months out
An advance look at France's next presidential election, where the incumbent faces a range of challengers from both sides of the spectrum.
France’s contested middle ground
France's two traditional parties are both struggling for relevance as they try to settle on a candidate in advance of next year's presidential election.
France keeps out the extremists
France's regional and departmental elections show a combination of disaffection among voters and continued allegiance to the mainstream.
France votes, regionally
France's regional elections have not attracted much voter interest, but they give a graphic demonstration of how much the country's party system has changed in five and a half years.
Third time lucky for New Caledonia?
France opts for an early date for New Caledonia's next vote on independence. That accords with the wishes of the anti-independence forces, but their task remains a difficult one.
Bonaparte, 200 years on
Two hundred years on from the death of Napoleon, his legacy has never ceased to be a live political question in France. Emmanuel Macron is the latest to try to deal with it.
France’s far right plays to the base
A year out from France's presidential election, Emmanuel Macron's strongest card is once again the disunity of his opponents, and especially the fact that the far right is at the head of the pack.
A Parisian anniversary
Marking the 150th anniversary of the Paris Commune, and wondering if it still carries lessons for today.
The World is Not Enough 