The Popular Right ( French: ''La Droite populaire'', commonly known as ''La Droite pop'') is a recognised movement within the
National Rally
The National Rally (french: Rassemblement National, ; RN), until 2018 known as the National Front (french: link=no, Front National, ; FN), is a Far-right politics, far-rightAbridged list of reliable sources that refer to National Rally as fa ...
(RN) since 2019, previously within the
Union for a Popular Movement
The Union for a Popular Movement (french: link=no, Union pour un mouvement populaire, ; UMP, ) was a centre-right political party in France that was one of the two major contemporary political parties in France along with the centre-left Social ...
(UMP) and The Republicans (LR). It was founded in 2010 as the ''Collectif parlementaire de la Droite populaire'', a caucus of UMP parliamentarians which included 26 members of the
National Assembly
In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repre ...
. The Popular Right seeks to emphasise issues such as national identity, security and immigration. Its leader is
Thierry Mariani
Thierry Mariani (born 8 August 1958) is a French politician serving as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) since 2019. He previously served as Minister in charge of Transport under the Minister of Ecology, Sustainable development, Transp ...
, currently an MEP.
History and ideology
The movement was created as an informal parliamentary caucus within the then-governing UMP in June 2010 by
Lionnel Luca
Lionnel Luca (born 19 December 1954 in Boulogne-Billancourt) is a French politician who was a member of the National Assembly for Alpes-Maritime's 6th constituency from 1997 to 2007. Since 2014, he is the Mayor of Villeneuve-Loubet. Luca is a ...
,
Richard Mallié
Richard Mallié (born 26 October 1948) is a French politician who has served as Mayor (France), Mayor of Bouc-Bel-Air since 2014, previously holding the office from 1989 to 2002. He was a member of the National Assembly (France), National Assemb ...
,
Jean-Paul Garraud
Jean-Paul Garraud (born 27 February 1956) is a French politician serving as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) since 2019. A cofounder of The Popular Right, he is former member of the National Assembly (France), National Assembly, where ...
and
Thierry Mariani
Thierry Mariani (born 8 August 1958) is a French politician serving as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) since 2019. He previously served as Minister in charge of Transport under the Minister of Ecology, Sustainable development, Transp ...
- all members of the UMP's right-wing. It was later joined by other parliamentarians, most of them from the
Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (; or , ; commonly shortened to PACA; en, Provence-Alps-French Riviera, italic=yes; also branded as Région Sud) is one of the eighteen administrative regions of France, the far southeastern on the mainland. Its pref ...
region of southeastern France, a region where the far-right National Front is very strong.
The movement's charter focused on six themes: nation, patriotism,
free enterprise
In economics, a free market is an economic system in which the prices of goods and services are determined by supply and demand expressed by sellers and buyers. Such markets, as modeled, operate without the intervention of government or any ...
, family policy, security, responsible management of public finances, and French prestige abroad. Emphasizing some of the most right-wing and law-and-order aspect of former
President
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corporate title)
*President (education), a leader of a college or university
*President (government title)
President may also refer to:
Automobiles
* Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...
Nicolas Sarkozy
Nicolas Paul Stéphane Sarközy de Nagy-Bocsa (; ; born 28 January 1955) is a French politician who served as President of France from 2007 to 2012.
Born in Paris, he is of Hungarian, Greek Jewish, and French origin. Mayor of Neuilly-sur-Se ...
's 2007 platform, it focused much of its actions on immigration and security. It has strongly opposed
foreigners' right to vote
Suffrage, the right to vote, is often extended to non-citizens. This right varies widely by place in terms of which non-citizens are allowed to vote and in which elections, though there has been a trend over the last 30 years to enfranchise more no ...
in local elections.
It has often created controversy because of its radical positions on certain issues, for example when it asked for references to
gender
Gender is the range of characteristics pertaining to femininity and masculinity and differentiating between them. Depending on the context, this may include sex-based social structures (i.e. gender roles) and gender identity. Most cultures u ...
to be removed from school textbooks. Some of its members have also indicated their support for local alliances with the far-right National Front, raising controversy within the UMP and on the left.
The group was badly hurt by the 2012 legislative elections, after which its weight in the
French National Assembly
The National Assembly (french: link=no, italics=set, Assemblée nationale; ) is the lower house of the bicameral French Parliament under the Fifth Republic, the upper house being the Senate (). The National Assembly's legislators are known a ...
shrank from 63 to 26 deputies. 37 of its members lost reelection. As it restructured itself as a motion for the November 2012 congress, leaders such as
Thierry Mariani
Thierry Mariani (born 8 August 1958) is a French politician serving as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) since 2019. He previously served as Minister in charge of Transport under the Minister of Ecology, Sustainable development, Transp ...
worried about the rise of similar motions such as
The Strong Right
The Strong Right (''La Droite forte'') was a conservative faction within the Union for a Popular Movement (UMP) and later The Republicans (LR). It was created as a faction in July 2012 by Guillaume Peltier and Geoffroy Didier.
Ideology
The moti ...
Le Figaro
''Le Figaro'' () is a French daily morning newspaper founded in 1826. It is headquartered on Boulevard Haussmann in the 9th arrondissement of Paris. The oldest national newspaper in France, ''Le Figaro'' is one of three French newspapers of reco ...
'', 20 November 2012 barely enough to qualify as a recognized movement in the UMP.
Élie Aboud
Élie Aboud ( ar, ايلي عبود; born 12 October 1959 in Beirut, Lebanon) is a French-Lebanese politician and doctor. As a member of the National Assembly of France, he represents the 6th circonscription of the Hérault department, and is ...
(
Hérault
Hérault (; oc, Erau, ) is a department of the region of Occitania, Southern France. Named after the Hérault River, its prefecture is Montpellier. It had a population of 1,175,623 in 2019.Yves Albarello (
Seine-et-Marne
Seine-et-Marne () is a Departments of France, department in the Île-de-France Regions of France, region in Northern France. Named after the rivers Seine and Marne (river), Marne, it is the region's largest department with an area of 5,915 square ...
)
*
Julien Aubert
Julien Aubert (born 11 June 1978) is a French politician and civil servant who represented the 5th constituency of the Vaucluse department in the National Assembly from 2012 to 2022. A member of The Republicans (LR) and its predecessor parties, ...
(
Vaucluse
Vaucluse (; oc, Vauclusa, label= Provençal or ) is a department in the southeastern French region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur. It had a population of 561,469 as of 2019.Jean-Claude Bouchet (
Vaucluse
Vaucluse (; oc, Vauclusa, label= Provençal or ) is a department in the southeastern French region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur. It had a population of 561,469 as of 2019.Valérie Boyer (
Bouches-du-Rhône
Bouches-du-Rhône ( , , ; oc, Bocas de Ròse ; "Mouths of the Rhône") is a department in Southern France. It borders Vaucluse to the north, Gard to the west and Var to the east. The Mediterranean Sea lies to the south. Its prefecture and large ...
)
*
Gérald Darmanin
Gérald Moussa Darmanin (; born 11 October 1982) is a French politician who has been serving as Minister of the Interior in the governments of Prime Ministers Jean Castex and Élisabeth Borne since 2020.
A former member of The Republicans (LR) ...
(
Nord
Nord, a word meaning "north" in several European languages, may refer to:
Acronyms
* National Organization for Rare Disorders, an American nonprofit organization
* New Orleans Recreation Department, New Orleans, Louisiana, US
Film and televisi ...
Nord
Nord, a word meaning "north" in several European languages, may refer to:
Acronyms
* National Organization for Rare Disorders, an American nonprofit organization
* New Orleans Recreation Department, New Orleans, Louisiana, US
Film and televisi ...
)
*
Bernard Deflesselles
Bernard Deflesselles (born 16 October 1953) is a French politician serving as the member of the National Assembly for the 9th constituency of Bouches-du-Rhône since 1999. A member of The Republicans (LR), his constituency is located in the depa ...
(
Bouches-du-Rhône
Bouches-du-Rhône ( , , ; oc, Bocas de Ròse ; "Mouths of the Rhône") is a department in Southern France. It borders Vaucluse to the north, Gard to the west and Var to the east. The Mediterranean Sea lies to the south. Its prefecture and large ...
)
*
Nicolas Dhuicq
Nicolas Dhuicq (born 29 November 1960 in Paris) is a French politician. He is the mayor of Brienne-le-Château and a former member of the National Assembly of France from 2007 to 2017. He represented Aube's 1st constituency as a member of "L ...
(
Aube
Aube () is a French department in the Grand Est region of north-eastern France. As with sixty departments in France, this department is named after a river: the Aube. With 310,242 inhabitants (2019),Sauveur Gandolfi-Scheit
Sauveur Gandolfi-Scheit (born 19 January 1947 in Bastia, Haute-Corse) was a member of the National Assembly of France. He represented Haute-Corse's 1st constituency from 2007 to 2017, as a member of the Union for a Popular Movement
The Uni ...
(
Haute-Corse
Haute-Corse (; co, Corsica suprana , or ; en, Upper Corsica) is (as of 2022) an administrative department of France, consisting of the northern part of the island of Corsica. The corresponding departmental territorial collectivity merged wi ...
)
*
Franck Gilard
Franck Gilard (born November 1, 1950, in Riaillé, Loire-Atlantique) was a member of the National Assembly of France from 2002 to 2017, representing the 5th constituency of the Eure department, as a member of the Union for a Popular Movement. ...
(
Eure
Eure () is a department in Normandy in Northwestern France, named after the river Eure. Its prefecture is Évreux. In 2019, Eure had a population of 599,507.Jean-Pierre Giran (
Var
Var or VAR may refer to:
Places
* Var (department), a department of France
* Var (river), France
* Vār, Iran, village in West Azerbaijan Province, Iran
* Var, Iran (disambiguation), other places in Iran
* Vár, a village in Obreja commune, Ca ...
Rhône
The Rhône ( , ; wae, Rotten ; frp, Rôno ; oc, Ròse ) is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and southeastern France before discharging into the Mediterranean Sea. At Ar ...
)
*
Patrick Labaune
Patrick Labaune (born 13 June 1951, in Paris) is a member of the National Assembly of France. He represents the Drôme department, and is a member of Les Républicains.
He is president
President most commonly refers to:
*President (corpora ...
(
Drôme
Drôme (; Occitan: ''Droma''; Arpitan: ''Drôma'') is the southernmost department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of Southeastern France. Named after the river Drôme, it had a population of 516,762 as of 2019.
)
*
Lionnel Luca
Lionnel Luca (born 19 December 1954 in Boulogne-Billancourt) is a French politician who was a member of the National Assembly for Alpes-Maritime's 6th constituency from 1997 to 2007. Since 2014, he is the Mayor of Villeneuve-Loubet. Luca is a ...
(
Alpes-Maritimes
Alpes-Maritimes (; oc, Aups Maritims; it, Alpi Marittime, "Maritime Alps") is a department of France located in the country's southeast corner, on the Italian border and Mediterranean coast. Part of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, it ...
)
*
Thierry Mariani
Thierry Mariani (born 8 August 1958) is a French politician serving as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) since 2019. He previously served as Minister in charge of Transport under the Minister of Ecology, Sustainable development, Transp ...
Rhône
The Rhône ( , ; wae, Rotten ; frp, Rôno ; oc, Ròse ) is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and southeastern France before discharging into the Mediterranean Sea. At Ar ...
)
*
Jacques Myard
Jacques Myard (born 14 August 1947) is a French politician and former diplomat who represented the 5th constituency of the Yvelines department in the National Assembly from 1993 to 2017. A member of The Republicans (LR), he has served as Mayo ...
(
Yvelines
Yvelines () is a department in the western part of the Île-de-France region in Northern France. In 2019, it had a population of 1,448,207.Bernard Reynès (
Bouches-du-Rhône
Bouches-du-Rhône ( , , ; oc, Bocas de Ròse ; "Mouths of the Rhône") is a department in Southern France. It borders Vaucluse to the north, Gard to the west and Var to the east. The Mediterranean Sea lies to the south. Its prefecture and large ...
Pyrénées-Orientales
Pyrénées-Orientales (; ca, Pirineus Orientals ; oc, Pirenèus Orientals ; ), also known as Northern Catalonia, is a department of the region of Occitania, Southern France, adjacent to the northern Spanish frontier and the Mediterranean Sea. ...
Rhône
The Rhône ( , ; wae, Rotten ; frp, Rôno ; oc, Ròse ) is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and southeastern France before discharging into the Mediterranean Sea. At Ar ...
)
*
Dominique Tian
Dominique Tian (born 14 December 1959) is a French businessman and retired politician who represented the Bouches-du-Rhône's 2nd constituency, 2nd constituency of the Bouches-du-Rhône Departments of France, department in the National Assembly ( ...
(
Bouches-du-Rhône
Bouches-du-Rhône ( , , ; oc, Bocas de Ròse ; "Mouths of the Rhône") is a department in Southern France. It borders Vaucluse to the north, Gard to the west and Var to the east. The Mediterranean Sea lies to the south. Its prefecture and large ...
Vosges
The Vosges ( , ; german: Vogesen ; Franconian and gsw, Vogese) are a range of low mountains in Eastern France, near its border with Germany. Together with the Palatine Forest to the north on the German side of the border, they form a single ...
Rhône
The Rhône ( , ; wae, Rotten ; frp, Rôno ; oc, Ròse ) is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and southeastern France before discharging into the Mediterranean Sea. At Ar ...
Var
Var or VAR may refer to:
Places
* Var (department), a department of France
* Var (river), France
* Vār, Iran, village in West Azerbaijan Province, Iran
* Var, Iran (disambiguation), other places in Iran
* Vár, a village in Obreja commune, Ca ...
Ain
Ain (, ; frp, En) is a department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in Eastern France. Named after the Ain river, it is bordered by the Saône and Rhône rivers. Ain is located on the country's eastern edge, on the Swiss border, where it ...
)
Other members
*
Brigitte Barèges
Brigitte Barèges (born 1 May 1953 in Toulouse) is a member of the National Assembly of France. She represents the Tarn-et-Garonne department, The Republicans.
She is mayor of Montauban
Montauban (, ; oc, Montalban ) is a commune in t ...
, former deputy and mayor of
Montauban
Montauban (, ; oc, Montalban ) is a commune in the Tarn-et-Garonne department, region of Occitania, Southern France. It is the capital of the department and lies north of Toulouse. Montauban is the most populated town in Tarn-et-Garonne, an ...
(
Tarn-et-Garonne
Tarn-et-Garonne (; oc, Tarn e Garona ) is a department in the Occitania region in Southern France. It is traversed by the rivers Tarn and Garonne, from which it takes its name. The area was originally part of the former provinces of Quercy and ...
Pornic
Pornic (; ''Pornizh'' in Breton, ''Port-Nitz'' in Gallo) is a commune in the Loire-Atlantique department in western France.
In 1973 the commune of Pornic absorbed the neighbouring municipalities of Sainte-Marie-sur-Mer and Clion-sur-Mer.
Populat ...
(
Loire-Atlantique
Loire-Atlantique (; br, Liger-Atlantel; before 1957: ''Loire-Inférieure'', br, Liger-Izelañ, link=no) is a department in Pays de la Loire on the west coast of France, named after the river Loire and the Atlantic Ocean. It had a population o ...
Sausset-les-Pins
Sausset-les-Pins (; oc, Sausset dei Pins) or simply Sausset is a seaside commune in the Bouches-du-Rhône department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in Southern France. It is located on the Côte Bleue, just west of Carry-le-Rouet. ...
(
Bouches-du-Rhône
Bouches-du-Rhône ( , , ; oc, Bocas de Ròse ; "Mouths of the Rhône") is a department in Southern France. It borders Vaucluse to the north, Gard to the west and Var to the east. The Mediterranean Sea lies to the south. Its prefecture and large ...
)
*
Maryse Joissains-Masini
Maryse Joissains-Masini (born 15 August 1942), also known as Maryse Charton, was the mayor of Aix-en-Provence from 2001 to 2021. She was also a member of the National Assembly of France. in which she represented the Bouches-du-Rhône department, ...
, former deputy and mayor of
Aix-en-Provence
Aix-en-Provence (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Ais de Provença in classical norm, or in Mistralian norm, ; la, Aquae Sextiae), or simply Aix ( medieval Occitan: ''Aics''), is a city and commune in southern France, about north of Marseille. ...
(
Bouches-du-Rhône
Bouches-du-Rhône ( , , ; oc, Bocas de Ròse ; "Mouths of the Rhône") is a department in Southern France. It borders Vaucluse to the north, Gard to the west and Var to the east. The Mediterranean Sea lies to the south. Its prefecture and large ...
)
*
Philippe Marini
Philippe Marini (born 28 January 1950 in Paris) is a former member of the Senate of France, who represented the Oise department. He is a member of the Union for a Popular Movement. He is of Italian origin.
From September 1992, Senator Marini ...
,
Senator
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
(
Oise
Oise ( ; ; pcd, Oése) is a department in the north of France. It is named after the river Oise. Inhabitants of the department are called ''Oisiens'' () or ''Isariens'', after the Latin name for the river, Isara. It had a population of 829,419 ...
)
*
Richard Mallié
Richard Mallié (born 26 October 1948) is a French politician who has served as Mayor (France), Mayor of Bouc-Bel-Air since 2014, previously holding the office from 1989 to 2002. He was a member of the National Assembly (France), National Assemb ...
, former deputy and mayor of
Bouc-Bel-Air
Bouc-Bel-Air (; oc, Boc) is a Communes of France, commune in the Bouches-du-Rhône Departments of France, department, Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region in Southern France. It is situated between Aix-en-Provence to the north, ...
(
Bouches-du-Rhône
Bouches-du-Rhône ( , , ; oc, Bocas de Ròse ; "Mouths of the Rhône") is a department in Southern France. It borders Vaucluse to the north, Gard to the west and Var to the east. The Mediterranean Sea lies to the south. Its prefecture and large ...
)
*
Georges Mothron
Georges Mothron (born April 5, 1948 in Argenteuil) is a former member of the National Assembly of France. He represented the Val-d'Oise
Val-d'Oise (, "Vale of the Oise") is a department in the Île-de-France region, Northern France. It w ...
, former deputy and mayor of
Argenteuil
Argenteuil () is a Communes of France, commune in the northwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the Kilometre Zero, center of Paris. Argenteuil is a Subprefectures in France, sub-prefecture of the Val-d'Oise Departments of France, ...
(
Val-d'Oise
Val-d'Oise (, "Vale of the Oise") is a department in the Île-de-France region, Northern France. It was created in 1968 following the split of the Seine-et-Oise department. In 2019, Val-d'Oise had a population of 1,249,674.
Raincy
Le Raincy () is a prestigious commune in the eastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris. Le Raincy is a subprefecture of the Seine-Saint-Denis department and the seat of the Arrondissement of Le Raincy.
Its popul ...
(
Seine-Saint-Denis
() is a department of France located in the Grand Paris metropolis in the region. In French, it is often referred to colloquially as ' or ' ("ninety-three" or "nine three"), after its official administrative number, 93. Its prefecture is Bobigny ...
Member of the European Parliament
A Member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament.
When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the ECSC) first met in 1952, its ...
Avignon
Avignon (, ; ; oc, Avinhon, label=Provençal dialect, Provençal or , ; la, Avenio) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Vaucluse Departments of France, department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region of So ...
Vaucluse
Vaucluse (; oc, Vauclusa, label= Provençal or ) is a department in the southeastern French region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur. It had a population of 561,469 as of 2019.Christian Vanneste
Christian Vanneste (born 14 July 1947) is a French politician. He served two terms as a deputy in the French Parliament (2002-2012), representing the Union for a Popular Movement (UMP).
Career
A member of the French Parliament, he was elected ...
, former deputy (
Nord
Nord, a word meaning "north" in several European languages, may refer to:
Acronyms
* National Organization for Rare Disorders, an American nonprofit organization
* New Orleans Recreation Department, New Orleans, Louisiana, US
Film and televisi ...