France’s 2022 parliamentary elections: ODIHR election assessment mission final report

The June 2022 parliamentary elections in France took place in a competitive and pluralistic environment, with all fundamental freedoms respected. Voters received ample and diverse information that enabled them to make an informed choice among numerous candidates registered in an inclusive manner. While the issue of equality of the vote across electoral constituencies needs to be addressed, and some technical aspects of the electoral process could be improved, the elections were effectively administered and enjoyed a high level of public trust.

These are some of the main conclusions from the final report on France’s 2022 parliamentary elections, published today by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR). The report offers 14 recommendations to bring elections in France closer in line with OSCE commitments and other international standards for democratic elections.

Recommendations include:

• Reviewing constituency boundaries periodically to ensure equal voting power;

• Conducting mandatory training of polling board chairs to ensure effective and consistent management of election day proceedings and making the recount of valid ballots possible in order to safeguard the integrity of the voting results;

• Ensuring the security of citizens’ personal data to enhance public confidence in the electoral process;

• Making the mechanism of defining political affiliation of candidates clear and transparent for voters, political contestants and the authorities;

• Facilitating access of all candidates to bank accounts and enhancing campaign finance transparency;

• Reviewing the existing legal framework regulating media concentration, defamation and measures to protect media from strategic lawsuits;

• Ensuring effective resolution of election disputes, including complaints related to the registration of candidates before the election days;

• Developing internal party policies to enhance women’s visibility in the campaign;

• Guaranteeing the access of citizen and international observers to all stages of the electoral process.

ODIHR deployed an Election Assessment Mission on 2 June 2022 to observe the parliamentary elections. All 57 participating States across the OSCE region have formally committed to following up promptly on ODIHR’s election assessments and recommendations.