France's Socialist Party and Raphaël Glucksmann's Place Publique party have ratified an agreement to hold a joint presidential primary in October 2026.
The vote will select a single candidate to represent the social-democratic movement in the French presidential election scheduled for April 18 and May 2, 2027.
Socialist Party leadership ratified the agreement on Tuesday evening, with its National Council voting 159 in favour, 32 against, and 21 abstaining. The National Political Assembly of Place Publique voted unanimously to approve the text.
Voting will take place through an electronic single-member ballot conducted over two rounds on October 9 to 10 and October 16 to 17. Candidates wishing to take part must declare their candidacies between September 1 and September 15.
Candidates and entry requirements
Four candidates have already declared their intention to participate in the contest. They include Glucksmann, who officially announced his campaign on Sunday, alongside Socialist lawmakers Philippe Brun and Jérôme Guedj, and former presidential candidate Ségolène Royal. Socialist Party leader Olivier Faure has not yet declared his candidacy.
To qualify for the primary, Socialist candidates must satisfy specific sponsorship rules. They need endorsements from 15 members of the National Council, 10 parliamentarians, 50 regional or departmental councillors spanning eight departments and three regions, or 50 mayors spread across three regions.
The Socialist Party has historically been one of the primary forces of the French centre-left, holding power under presidents François Mitterrand and François Hollande. Place Publique was established in 2018 by Glucksmann, an essayist and Member of the European Parliament, to unite pro-European social democrats.
Voter eligibility and party charter
Voting is open to members of both parties whose dues are up to date, as well as individuals who join either party or pay a fee to a newly created social-democratic pole. This body offers an alternative for voters who prefer not to formally join a political party.
Participants must pay a 15 euro contribution to vote, though Socialist Party leadership noted that Faure's faction secured a reduced 10 euro fee for voters with lower incomes. Electors cannot register or pay on election days and must complete the process at least three days before either round of voting.
The negotiation of the agreement highlighted political divisions between the two groups. Socialist leadership rejected a proposal from Glucksmann to include a clause in the candidates' charter of values explicitly barring any legislative election pacts with the far-left party La France Insoumise. A Socialist official stated that such a commitment had no place in a candidate charter, while Glucksmann pledged to bring the issue into the public debate.
Under the terms of the charter, all candidates must instead commit to offering a joint alliance to all parties of the democratic, ecological, and republican left. The Socialist Party specified that the coalition effort aims to construct a shared policy program, a legislative pact, and a governing agreement for the upcoming presidential campaign.
