The role and powers of the President of the Republic

The president of the Republic is at once arbiter of the institutions, commander of the armed forces and, most often, the driving force behind government policy. His real weight depends on the majority he holds in the National Assembly.

An arbiter and a leader

The Constitution makes the president an arbiter. He ensures respect for the Constitution and the regular functioning of the public authorities. It also makes him the guarantor of national independence and of the integrity of the territory. In practice, since 1958, the president sets the major policy directions of the country when he has a majority in the Assembly.

The government, led by the Prime Minister, “determines and conducts the policy of the Nation” under Article 20. It is the government, not the president, that is accountable to the National Assembly. This division explains why practice varies according to the political context.

Powers held in his own right

Certain powers are exercised by the president alone, without countersignature by the Prime Minister:

appointing the Prime Minister;
submitting a bill to referendum, on the proposal of the government or of both assemblies;
dissolving the National Assembly;
using the exceptional powers of Article 16;
addressing a message to Parliament or speaking before Congress;
referring matters to the Constitutional Council and appointing three of its members, including its president.

Article 16 has been used only once, in 1961, after the generals' putsch in Algiers. Since 2008, the Constitutional Council may be seized after thirty days to verify that the conditions are still met.

Powers requiring countersignature

Other powers require the countersignature of the Prime Minister. The president appoints ministers on the Prime Minister's proposal. He signs ordinances and decrees deliberated in the Council of Ministers. He appoints to civil and military posts of the State. For the most important appointments, parliamentary committees give an opinion and may oppose them by a three-fifths majority of votes cast.

The president chairs the Council of Ministers every week. He promulgates laws within fifteen days of their final adoption.

Defence and diplomacy

The president is commander of the armed forces. He chairs the higher councils and committees of national defence. He holds the decision to deploy the nuclear deterrent. He negotiates and ratifies treaties, accredits ambassadors and represents France at international summits, notably the European Council. The term “reserved domain” is sometimes used for defence and diplomacy. The expression does not appear in the Constitution.

Cohabitation: a president with reduced powers

When the Assembly has a majority opposed to the president, he must appoint a Prime Minister drawn from that majority. This is cohabitation. France has experienced it three times:

1986-1988: François Mitterrand and Jacques Chirac;
1993-1995: François Mitterrand and Édouard Balladur;
1997-2002: Jacques Chirac and Lionel Jospin.

In these periods, the government conducts domestic policy. The president keeps his own powers and an important role in defence and foreign affairs. Since the five-year term and the reversal of the electoral calendar in 2002, no cohabitation has occurred.

A relative majority since 2022

Since the legislative elections of 2022, then those of 2024, no camp holds an absolute majority in the Assembly. The president appoints the Prime Minister, but the latter must avoid a motion of no confidence. This situation has strengthened the role of negotiations between parliamentary groups.

Responsibility

The president is not politically accountable to Parliament. He cannot be prosecuted or compelled to testify during his term, except before the International Criminal Court. Proceedings are suspended and resume one month after the end of his duties. Removal remains possible by the High Court in case of serious breach of his duties.