Government

Franois Hollande,
electedPresident of the French
Republic in April 2012.

Main articles: Political system

of France, Cabinet of France,
and Constitution of France
The French Republic is
a unitary semi-presidential re

public with strong democratic

traditions.[108] The constitution
of the Fifth Republic was
approved by referendum on
28 September 1958.[109] It
greatly strengthened the
authority of the executive in
relation to parliament. The
executive branch itself has
two leaders: the President of
the Republic,

currently Franois Hollande,

who is head of state and is
elected directly by universal
adult suffrage for a 5-year
term (formerly 7 years),[110] and
the Government, led by the
president-appointed Prime
Minister, currently Manuel
Valls.
The French parliament is
a bicameral legislature

comprising a National
Assembly (Assemble
Nationale) and a Senate.
[111]

The National Assembly

deputies represent local

constituencies and are
directly elected for 5-year
terms.[112] The Assembly has
the power to dismiss the
government, and thus the
majority in the Assembly

determines the choice of

government. Senators are
chosen by an electoral
college for 6-year terms
(originally 9-year terms), and
one half of the seats are
submitted to election every 3
years starting in September
2008.[113]
The Senate's legislative
powers are limited; in the

event of disagreement
between the two chambers,
the National Assembly has
the final say.[114]The
government has a strong
influence in shaping the
agenda of Parliament.
French politics are
characterised by two
politically opposed groupings:
one left-wing, centred on

the French Socialist Party,

and the other right-wing,
centred previously around
the Rassemblement pour la
Rpublique (RPR), then its
successor the UMP Union for
a Popular Movement(UMP),
which in 2015 was renamed
Les Rpublicains.[115] Since the
2012 elections, the executive

branch is currently composed

mostly of the Socialist Party.