Who are the presidents of the parliamentary groups in the National Assembly?

Most of the political parties represented at the Palais-Bourbon have designated their leader, before the election for the presidency of the National Assembly, scheduled for July 18.

After the early legislative elections and the loss of the relative majority by the presidential camp, the National Assembly will take on more and more importance in the new legislature. By joining forces to exceed 289 deputies, several parliamentary groups could bring down the next government through a motion of censure. Composed of at least 15 Elected, these groups allow their members to ask questions of the government, to distribute seats in committees or even to request suspensions of the session.

Parliamentary groups can be formed until Wednesday, July 17, the day before the election for the presidency of the National Assembly. Some have already elected their leader, a very political position that allows them to sit on the conference of presidents, responsible for setting part of the agenda. Franceinfo presents to you, in decreasing numbers, these personalities who will play an important role in the new term.

Marine Le Pen (National Rally)

After leaving the leadership of the National Rally to Jordan Bardella to focus on her group of 89 deputies after 2022, Marine Le Pen, 55, was unsurprisingly re-elected president of the RN deputies on Wednesday, July 10. Loyal to the three-time presidential candidate, the elected representatives of the party with the flame are now 125, franceinfo learned from several sources within the RN group. This is the first parliamentary group in terms of numbers, a first for the far right under the Fifth Republic.

Gabriel Attal (Together for the Republic)

Prime Minister of a government on the verge of resigning, Gabriel Attal was appointed president of the Renaissance group on Saturday, July 13, after having made his candidacy official the day before. The 34-year-old deputy from Hauts-de-Seine was the only candidate in the running. On the occasion of the new legislature, the group of 99 deputies renamed itself Ensemble pour la République on Monday. The presidency of the presidential party group promises to be delicate, due to divisions within the party.

Mathilde Panot (France Insoumise)

Mathilde Panot is back at the head of the deputies of La France insoumise. The 35-year-old elected official announced on Tuesday, July 9, her re-election as president of the parliamentary group, which should have between 70 and 80 members (compared to 75 previously). The parliamentarian from Val-de-Marne had succeeded Jean-Luc Mélenchon as president of the rebellious group in October 2021.

Boris Vallaud (Socialist Party)

Like La France Insoumise, the Socialist Party is banking on continuity in the National Assembly. Landes MP Boris Vallaud was re-elected president of the PS group on Wednesday, July 10. In office since 2022, the 48-year-old elected official can count on a large group, which has grown from 31 to “at least” 69 elected at the end of the legislative elections. He was also one of François Hollande’s advisors at the Elysée, now a member of his group after his election in Corrèze.

Laurent Wauquiez (The Republican Right)

Laurent Wauquiez is making a comeback. Former president of the Les Républicains party from 2017 to 2019, the president of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region was elected deputy for Haute-Loire on Sunday, July 7. Three days later, the former minister, aged 49, became the new president of the Les Républicains group, renamed La Droite républicaine to distinguish itself from the LR Ciottistes who have formed an alliance with the RN. Around 45 deputies have so far registered within this group, according to a parliamentary source. This is less than the 61 elected LR between 2022 and 2024.

Marc Fesneau (MoDem)

In his own words, he is “for the moment (…) still” Minister of Agriculture. However, Marc Fesneau announced on Wednesday, July 10, that he had been elected head of the MoDem group. The 53-year-old elected representative from Loir-et-Cher replaces Jean-Paul Mattei, who was seeking his succession. At the Palais-Bourbon, François Bayrou’s party has around thirty members, compared to 50 before the dissolution.

Cyrielle Chatelain (Ecologist and Social)

Cyrielle Chatelain, president of the environmental group during the previous legislature, succeeds herself. The 36-year-old MP for Isère was appointed on Tuesday 16 July to head this group, which is changing its name to the Ecologist and Social group. It now has 38 members, with the Génération.s MPs and five purged members from La France Insoumise: Clémentine Autain, Alexis Corbière, Hendrik Davi, François Ruffin and Danielle Simonnet.

Laurent Marcangeli (Horizons & independents)

Within the Horizons & group Independents, the deputy of South Corsica Laurent Marcangeli was reappointed to the presidency, according to a press release published on Wednesday July 10. Aged 43, this close friend of the former Prime Minister Edouard Philippe remains the leader of the center-right group born in 2022, which now has 27 members.

Eric Ciotti (Right)

Now allies of the National Rally, Eric Ciotti and his supporters have managed to create a parliamentary group, called “A droite”. The 58-year-old deputy from Alpes-Maritimes will lead this formation, which is separate from the RN and has around fifteen elected members.

André Chassaigne (Democratic and Republican Left)

As in 2022, the communists did not manage to elect more than 15 candidates in the legislative elections. The PCF can however count on overseas elected officials to succeed in exceeding this threshold, with 16 deputies. André Chassaigne, who has led the Democratic and Republican Left group since 2012, will retain this function under the new legislature, after the approval of the elected officials on Monday, July 15. A vote should formalize this appointment of the 74-year-old politician during the week.

Liot Group President Not Yet Appointed

He had made headlines at the time of the pension reform, when his deputies had filed a motion of censure that almost brought down the government, in March 2023. The Liot group (Liberties, Independents, Overseas and Territories) claims to be able to reconstitute itself after the second round. On the other hand, the president of the group will no longer be Bertrand Pancher, who was defeated in the legislative elections.