1998 French regional elections

Regional elections were held in France on 15 March 1998. At stake were the presidencies of each of France's 26 regions, which, though they don't have legislative autonomy, manage sizeable budgets.

1998 French regional elections

15 March 1998
26 Regional Presidencies
First party Second party Third party   Leader Philippe Seguin François Hollande Jean-Marie Le Pen Party RPR PS FN Regions 15 10 0 Change 6 6 Votes 7,804,931 8,005,830 3,271,525 Percentage 35.63% 36.55% 14.94%
Presidents elected by region   Rally for the Republic   Union for French Democracy   Socialist Party   Martinican Independence Movement   Communist Party of Réunion   Miscellaneous left

The parliamentary right, led by the conservative Gaullist Rally for the Republic and the centre-right Union for French Democracy won the presidency of 15 of the 26 regions, the rest were won by the French Socialist Party and its allies (Communists, Greens, Radicals). The far-right National Front obtained good results, increasing its number of seats. The far-left and Hunting, Fishing, Nature, Tradition also won seats on various regional councils.

These election were the last ones conducted using the D'Hondt method and a closed list proportional representation, with a threshold of five percent of valid votes being applied regionally,[1] later replaced by a two-round mixed-member majoritarian system for the 2004 elections.[2]