The Union of the Democratic Forces (''Union des forces démocratiques'', UFD) was an electoral coalition set up in 1958 by many
trade unions
A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and Employee ben ...
, political, and associative organizations to unite the non-communist left opposed to the return of General
Charles de Gaulle
Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle (; ; (commonly abbreviated as CDG) 22 November 18909 November 1970) was a French army officer and statesman who led Free France against Nazi Germany in World War II and chaired the Provisional Government ...
to power and the
French Fifth Republic
The Fifth Republic (french: Cinquième République) is France's current republican system of government. It was established on 4 October 1958 by Charles de Gaulle under the Constitution of the Fifth Republic.. The Fifth Republic emerged from ...
. It was also strongly opposed to the
1958 constitutional referendum, also put forward by de Gaulle.
All except two of its candidates were defeated in the
1958 legislative election. However, its candidate in the indirect
1958 presidential election,
Albert Châtelet
Albert Châtelet (24 October 1883 – 30 June 1960) was a French politician and mathematician.
Biography
Châtelet was a student at the École normale supérieure (Paris) from 1905 to 1908, succeeding to the Agrégation (a highly selective compe ...
, a left-wing
scientist
A scientist is a person who conducts Scientific method, scientific research to advance knowledge in an Branches of science, area of the natural sciences.
In classical antiquity, there was no real ancient analog of a modern scientist. Instead, ...
, finished third. He obtained 6,721 votes or 8.46% of the vote, mostly due to the absence of a
democratic socialist
Democratic socialism is a left-wing political philosophy that supports political democracy and some form of a socially owned economy, with a particular emphasis on economic democracy, workplace democracy, and workers' self-management within ...
candidate.
Having failed to overcome debates over its ideology and role, as well as the fact that the population voted strongly for the 1958 referendum, the UFD disappeared, with many joining the
Unified Socialist Party.
Socialist parties in France
Political parties established in 1958
Political parties of the French Fifth Republic
1958 establishments in France
Defunct political party alliances in France
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