POINT OF VIEW. The proportional: “the return to the Fourth Republic”

For Francois Bayrou, the main thing for France is to return to the good old days of pivotal political parties. In fact, he wants to take revenge on the Gaullian constitution; he ardently wishes to return to the 4th Republic, the one which allows all politicians to carve out a career. At that time, the average length of government was 6 months, each time resulting from a major political crisis. Let us remember! The governments Robert Schumann and Henri Queuille only lived for 2 days, from September 5 to 7, 1948 for the first, from July 2 to 4, 1950 for the second. Under the Fifth Republic, the duration was extended to more than 3 years, under normal conditions ensuring unfailing political continuity.

François Bayrou’s insistent approach to introduce proportionality for legislative elections of next year is the second act to destroy our constitution of 1958 (corrected in 1962 by the presidential election by universal suffrage). It is advisable to explain it.

2000, the first act

It is useful to remember that the first anti-Fifth Republic act took place in 2000 at the initiative of the Giscard trio, Chirac, Jospin, already supported by François Bayrou in the name of centrism.

It is paradoxical to read, in the draft constitutional law submitted to referendum (1), that the five-year term does not call into question the balance of institutions and that he will thus contribute to the vitality of democratic debate .

Alas, the promoters of this change were birds of ill omen, aware of their actions because they hijacked the very spirit of the constitution in terms of breathing democracy and political efficiency.

Copy USA

On their part, there was the will to introduce into the French constitution a major element of the constitution of the United States. Indeed, by reducing the duration of the presidential mandate from 7 to 5 years, and by subordinating the calendar of legislative elections now placed at the end of the election of the President of the Republic, French democracy changes its nature: the regime is now, de facto, presidential. Contrary to what the promoters of the modification of the text, they seriously unbalanced the institutions and blocked, asphyxiated the democratic debate.

The association of almost simultaneous presidential elections followed by legislative ones causes a blocking democratic life all the more inadmissible since there are no elections of the United States mid-term with us, that is to say the renewal of the Chamber of Representatives (Deputies) in its entirety, and that of the Senate for a third of the seats. We are not Anglo Saxons!

No democratic breath

The evils of which François Bayrou complains are in fact inherent, contained in the constitutional reform of the year 2000. Today, he says, the appearance of power is the hyperpower of all powers in the hands of the president and the majority. .

By his words, he consecrates the misdeeds of the reduction of the presidential mandate, from the seven-year term to the five-year term, reinforced by the almost joint calendar of the presidential and legislative elections.

In reality, since the implementation of this change, there is no longer democratic breathing. What is said during the campaign no longer suffers from any dispute, and for 5 years, the French no longer have the right to speak. The National Assembly renewed in the wake hardly exists any more.

2022, the killing?

Ephemeral minister of the first government of Emmanuel Macron (2), resettled in a role of planner whose role and mission are still unknown, François Bayrou, Mayor of Pau, advocates a return to proportionality for the next legislative elections. Whether it is partial or total proportionality, this concern meets only one objective: to elect deputies totally subservient to a political party and to entrust power to a few feudal lords, caciques of political life. It is the return to the party regime, DNA of the 4th Republic

The party staffs […] will one day be tempted by a return to proportionality, the privileged weapon of the party regime indicated Michel Debré, one of the founding fathers of the Constitution of October 4, 1958 (3), in his memoirs. He added with an obviousness which should be essential to all that then the government is no longer the expression of a majority obtained by the electorate. It becomes the result of a combination between several minorities .

However, François Bayrou persists in not drawing up the findings and the causes of the situation he deplores. More seriously, he thinks he has found the solution to reduce the difficulties raised by proposing an election of deputies by proportional representation which in reality is an illusion and a serious fault with regard to the very life of democracy and the spirit of Fifth Republic. History and experience teaches that proportional representation is a destructive, ineffective mode of political stability and government effectiveness.

Changing the voting system is an aberration

Switching from the single-member ballot to 2 rounds to proportional representation undoubtedly involves seeing new deputies appearing at the Palais Bourbon representing very minority political tendencies, but above all in entrusting the controls of the legislative power to a squad of a few more concerned politicians. of their career than of the general and national interest.

With only 20% of a proportional system, and therefore 80% of a majority system, the party of the Head of State would not be in the majority on its own. Modem support being essential to the constitution of a parliamentary majority, Mr. Bayrou would thus have a pivotal group at the Palais Bourbon. After being kingmaker, he would become master of the game explains Alain Tranchant in a forum of France-Soir.

This voting method organizes the transfer of national sovereignty to political parties, to a minority of deputies who would weaken the executive power, the government. Only the majority system guarantees both stability and efficiency.

Whether we like it or not, the majority vote is consubstantial with the Fifth Republic.

General de Gaulle expressed himself clearly on this point: In order to have a majority, you need a majority system … rejecting proportional representation dear to rivalries and party exclusives, but incompatible with the continued support of a politician . On March 6, 1950, he added: Mixing the proportional system with the majority system is a trick!

In addition, a stone’s throw from the 2022 deadlines, it looks like a coup that is incompatible with a desire for appeasement at a time when we have other fish to fry.

(1) The referendum of September 24, 2000 gave the following results:

Registered voters: 39,941,192, Voters: 12,058,688, Votes cast: 10,118,348

YES: 7,407,697, NO: 2,710,651 – abstention and nil: 75%.

(2) The president of the Modem, François Bayrou, was indicted for complicity in the embezzlement of public funds in the case of the alleged fictitious jobs of the centrist formation in the European Parliament

(3) Memoirs of Michel Debré, 1988.