Cumul des mandats

   Expression used to describe the cumulation, by a single politician, of a range of different representative functions, such as parliamentarian and mayor, or mayor and president of a regional council. The principle of combining different representative roles is deeply anchored in the French political tradition, where national politicians frequently built up their reputation and power bases in their local fiefdoms, and local politics were often in the hands of local "notables" with their fingers in many pies. . Jacques Chirac, for example, had a range of elected and ministerial jobs, and was at one time simultaneously député for the Corrèzedepartment, President of the General council of Corrèze, and Mayor of Paris. Since the 1990's, there have been attempts to outlaw the practice of double mandates. Lionel Jospin forbade ministers in his government from being mayor at the same time, and this unwritten rule continued to be applied - more or less - until the end of the Chirac presidency. Since the start of the Sarkozy presidency, it has been enforced less stringently. According to a 2007 opinion poll for Le Nouvel Observateur, 74% of French people disapprove of the principle of cumul des mandats. Reform of this aspect of French life would surely be appreciated by voters, but the principle is so well rooted in the French socio-political system, and so many decision-makers and advisors- of all political persuasions - have a vested interest in the system, that this is a reform that will likely prove very difficult to implement.