Latest France government News
High-stakes French legislative election hits torrid final stretch before first-round voting begins
PARIS (AP) — With their own and France's fates in the balance, candidates were making their last campaign pushes Friday for the first round of voting in a pivotal and polarizing legislative election in which the centrist government of President Emmanuel Macron risks a potentially fatal beating at...
Macron weakened at home and abroad as an early French election gives the far right momentum
PARIS (AP) — President Emmanuel Macron once appeared as a bold, young leader offering to revive France through radical pro-business, pro-European policies, leaving voters with “no reason anymore” to vote for the extremes. Seven years after he was first elected, his call for an...
Here’s why the Olympics have a French connection (and it ain’t just Paris 2024)
PARIS (AP) — Ever wondered why French is spoken during medal announcements at the Olympic Games? The truth is that while the ancient Olympics originated in Greece, its modern incarnation is very much a French affair. The Games were revived in the 1890s by a French nobleman, Baron...
France is facing an election like no other. Here's how it works and what comes next
PARIS (AP) — French voters are being called to the polls on Sunday for an exceptional moment in their political history: the first round of snap parliamentary elections that could see the country’s first far-right government since the World War II Nazi occupation — or no majority emerging at...
French far-right leader Le Pen questions president's role as army chief ahead of parliament election
NICE, France (AP) — With just three days to go until France's landmark legislative elections, the country’s far-right leader on Thursday raised the uncomfortable question of who would be in charge of the military if her party takes over the government after the two-round balloting — prompting...
Jackie Clarkson, longtime New Orleans politician and mother of actor Patricia Clarkson, dead at 88
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Jaquelyn Brechtel “Jackie” Clarkson, a former Louisiana legislator and three-term New Orleans City Council member who was the mother of Academy Award-nominated actor Patricia Clarkson, has died at age 88. City officials confirmed her death Wednesday. Mayor...
France bans extreme-right and radical Islamic groups ahead of polarizing elections
PARIS (AP) — France’s government on Wednesday ordered the dissolution of multiple extreme right and radical Muslim groups, four days before the first round of high-stakes legislative elections that may see a surge in support for political extremes. Snap national elections called...
Paris court upholds validity of France's arrest warrant for Syrian President Bashar Assad
PARIS (AP) — The Paris appeals court ruled on Wednesday that an international arrest warrant for Syrian President Bashar Assad issued by France for alleged complicity in war crimes during Syria’s civil war is valid and remains in place, lawyers said. Jeanne Sulzer and Clemence...
US and allies clash with Tehran and Moscow over Iranian nuclear program at UN Security Council
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The United States and its key European allies clashed with Iran and Russia over Tehran’s expanding nuclear program, with the U.S. vowing “to use all means necessary to prevent a nuclear-armed Iran” in a U.N. Security Council meeting on Monday. The U.S.,...
New Caledonia independence group demands Indigenous leader's release from custody in mainland France
NICE, France (AP) — Members of a pro-independence movement in the French Pacific territory of New Caledonia demanded on Monday the "release and immediate return” of the Indigenous Kanak leader who was flown to mainland France for pretrial detention after recent deadly unrest. ...
