Politics of France

French politics under the Fifth Republic After Charles de Gaulle had the constitution of the French Fifth Republic adopted in 1958, France was ruled by successive right-wing administrations until 1981. Throughout the 1960s, left-wing parties fared rather badly in national elections. The successive governments generally applied the Gaullist program of national independence, and modernization in a dirigiste fashion. The Gaullist government, however, was criticized for its heavy-handedness: while elections were free, the state had a monopoly on …

…Travailleurs Chrétiens * Solidaires Unitaires Démocratiques, the "Group of 10", a group of radical trade unions; Employers' unions. * Union of French Corporations (Mouvement des Entreprises de France or MEDEF, formally known as CNPF), sometimes referred to as patronat Peasants' unions. * Fédération Nationale des Syndicats d'Exploitants Agricoles * Centre National des Jeunes Agriculteurs * Confédération Paysanne