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French Senate election: 93,469 grand electors to vote Sunday
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On September 27, 2026, 93,469 grand electors will vote in the French senatorial elections, renewing 178 of the 348 Senate seats across about 60 departments. Voting is mandatory under threat of a fine. The electoral college is predominantly male, older, and comes mainly from small communes, according to an analysis by Le Monde's Décodeurs. The college comprises a handful of parliamentarians, hundreds of departmental and regional councilors, and tens of thousands of municipal council delegates. In communes under 9,000 inhabitants, the municipal council elects 'elected delegates'; in cities over 9,000, all councilors are 'delegates by right'; and in cities over 30,800, additional non-elected delegates chosen from electoral lists also vote. The full article is behind a paywall.
Source report
Senatorial elections in Perpignan, September 24, 2023. JC MILHET/HANS LUCAS VIA AFP
A handful of parliamentarians, a few hundred departmental or regional elected officials, and above all tens of thousands of municipal council representatives. All of these "grand electors" will take part in the senatorial elections on Sunday, September 27, which will renew 178 of the 348 seats in the upper house of Parliament.
In the roughly 60 departments concerned, 93,469 people will participate in choosing senators — voting is mandatory, under threat of a fine. Are they predominantly young or old? Mostly men or women? Affluent or modest? The Décodeurs team has delved into the statistics to paint their portrait.
An Overwhelming Majority of Municipal Councillors
The electoral college for the senatorial elections comprises several types of voters: all senators, deputies, regional and departmental councillors, and above all, delegates from municipal councils.
- In municipalities with fewer than 9,000 inhabitants, the municipal council elects some of its members to participate in the senatorial elections; these are known as "elected delegates."
- In cities with more than 9,000 inhabitants, all municipal councillors take part in the vote; they are referred to as "delegates by right."
- Finally, in cities with more than 30,800 inhabitants, "additional delegates" also vote: these are non-elected individuals chosen from the electoral rolls by municipal councillors to participate alongside them in the senatorial elections.
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Source
Politique : Toute l’actualité sur Le Monde.fr.Western
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