The 2023 French senatorial elections confirmed the stability of the Senate, which remains dominated by the right. The results of the vote also revealed the difficulties encountered by the Renaissance movement, while the National Rally (RN) returned to the Luxembourg Palace with three elected officials.
The right, in particular Les Républicains (LR), welcomed these results which consolidate their majority in the Senate. Bruno Retailleau, head of the LR senators, stressed that the LR group will remain the most important and denounced the disconnection of Macronism with the field. However, the LR group notes a slight erosion of its numbers, planning around 140 senators compared to 145 previously. On the other hand, the allied group of the centrist Union hopes to expand its ranks and reach around sixty members.
As for the Renaissance movement, the results were more mixed. The Secretary of State for Citizenship, Sonia Backès, suffered a symbolic defeat in New Caledonia, which could lead her to leave the government. Brigitte Bourguignon, former Renaissance minister, was also beaten in Pas-de-Calais. Nevertheless, the party managed to save a few seats in the Senate, notably that of Xavier Iacovelli (Hauts-de-Seine).
The left, for its part, recorded a symbolic victory in Paris, where it sent eight of the twelve Parisian senators to the Luxembourg Palace, while the right obtained only four seats. The Socialist Party (PS) intends to remain the second group in the Senate and has led alliances with the communists and environmentalists in several departments to strengthen its numbers. The objective was to reach the 100 left-wing senators in the chamber.
These 2023 senatorial elections underline the stability of the right in the Senate and highlight the difficulties encountered by the Renaissance movement. They also show that the left maintains its presence and tries to consolidate its ranks.