World

French far right to form Senate parliamentary group

By Michael Evers

Sep 28, 2026

French far-right leader Marine Le Pen — France's Marine Le Pen is preparing to make a run for president in 2027. -AP

Marine Le Pen's far-right National Rally has made significant gains in elections to the French Senate, securing a parliamentary group in the upper house for the first time.

Hold tight - we’re checking permissions before loading more content

In a post on X, Le Pen spoke of a "historic victory" and a "major milestone" on Sunday, even before the full results were available.

"The results have exceeded all our expectations; the breakthrough is comprehensive, confirming the growing popularity of the National Rally across the whole country," she wrote.

Around half of the Senate seats were up for election on Sunday. French senators are not elected directly by the public. Instead, around 93,500 elected officials, mostly local and regional representatives, were eligible to vote in the indirect election.

The chamber has so far been dominated by conservatives and fundamental shifts in power had not been expected.

The conservative Republicans were previously by far the largest group, with 131 seats.

President Emmanuel Macron's camp most recently held 19 seats.

The National Rally had previously held three seats, falling far short of the 10 seats required to form a parliamentary group.

The far-right populist party's gains on Sunday were aided by the support of a new right-wing splinter party led by former Republican chairman Éric Ciotti, who has been mayor of Nice since the end of March.

With a parliamentary group, the National Rally will now hold more rights in the Senate, including over speaking time, putting questions to the government and setting the agenda.

The results of the Senate election will bolster Le Pen as she prepares for her presidential bid in 2027.

Previously marginalised, the National Rally has sought to adopt a more moderate tone to appeal to broader sections of the population.

Since the 2024 general election, it has been the largest parliamentary group in the National Assembly, France's lower house.

Le Pen has been well ahead in the polls for months, giving her a good chance of reaching the run-off next year. Her chances of actually being elected president depend to a large extent on who stands for the other political camps.

The Senate comprises 348 members, who are elected for six years. Roughly half of the seats are up for election every three years. Sunday's election was for 178 of the seats.

The official final results of the election will be published on Monday.