Why do I need to know Front républicain?
Because this phrase has become more salient in recent years, as the French political landscape shifts.
What does it mean?
Front républicain - roughly pronounced fron ray-poo-blee-can - logically enough, means republican front.
But what this actually refers to is when figures from across the political spectrum join together to keep the far-right from power - either by urging their supporters to vote for a candidate from a different party in order to block a far-right victory, or when parties agree not to stand against each other in order to avoid dividing the anti far-right vote.
The term is in the news once again as France prepares for snap parliamentary elections at the end of June.
There are a two similar expressions you might hear as well: faire barrage à l’extrême droite (to block the far right) and retirer sa candidature (to withdraw from the running).
There's also Front populaire, which refers more specifically to an alliance of parties on the left.
In the context of the legislative elections, it is being used as mainstream parties make agreements not to field candidates against each other in certain seats - for example in a constituency where the far-right candidate may win, the leftist parties would agree to just field a single left candidate, rather than splitting the leftist vote.
You'll also hear it when elections of all types reach their second round of voting - if a far-right candidate makes it through to the second round, candidates from the centre-left or centre-right will often either withdraw from the polling altogether, or call on their supporters to vote for their rivals in order to avoid splitting the vote and enabling a far-right victory.
In recent times it's most commonly used against the far-right, but according to the historian Gilles Candar, writing in Le Monde, the notion dates back to 1885, when the monarchist and Bonapartist opposition recorded high scores in the first round of the legislative elections, and candidates who supported the Republic came together and were able to win a majority of seats.
Use it like this
Je suis en faveur d’un front républicain contre l’extrême droite – I am in favour of a republican front against the far right.
Le candidat socialiste a bénéficié d’un front républicain – The socialist candidate benefited from a republican front.
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