Right-Wing Extremism in France--Departmental Differences in the Vote for the National Front (Essay‪)‬

Abstract: Although many studies have addressed the electoral success of right-wing parties and, in particular, the French National Front, no analysis has so far explored departmental differences in the share of votes. This analysis fills this gap by evaluating socio-structural factors and intervening institutional and political variables that have influenced the electoral success of the radical right in the 96 departments of metropolitan France. In this respect, the unemployment rate, crime rate, the degree of urbanization, the electoral system type, the turnout rate as well as the vote share for the moderate right are regressed against the vote share of the National Front. This pooled time series analysis reveals that the degree of urbanization and the turnout rate are the two significant variables accounting for department specific differences in the vote share of the FN. Keywords: right wing parties, National Front, France, departments, extremism