French legislative election, 1877

French legislative election, 1877

14–28 October 1877

All 521 seats to the Chamber of Deputies   Majority party Minority party Third party   Leader Léon Gambetta Jules Ferry Eugène Rouher Party Republican Union Republican Left Bonapartist Leader's seat Paris Vosges Puy-de-Dôme Seats won 130 130 104 Seat change 32 63 28 Percentage 24.95% 24.95% 19.96% Swing 6.56 11.26 5.70

Composition of the Chamber of Deputies

Prime Minister before election Duc de Broglie Conservative/Orléanist Elected Prime Minister Gaëtan de Rochebouët Conservative/Legitimist

The 1877 general election to the Chamber of Deputies of the Third Republic was held on 14 and 28 October 1877, during the Seize Mai crisis.

President Patrice de MacMahon dissolved the Chamber of Deputies elected in 1876, in the hope of a conservative and royalist victory. Although the monarchists lost the election, they increased their seat total over 1876; the Republicans lost 80 seats, but retained a majority.

This election proved a serious setback for those hoping for a restoration of the monarchy, such as MacMahon. In the Senate elections of January 1879, the monarchists also lost control of the Senate. MacMahon resigned, and the Republican Jules Grévy was elected president by the National Assembly.^[1]

Along with the 1997 election, it is a rare case of an election in which the sitting President's party lost a general election which he had called.

Results

Parliamentary Groups

Affiliation	Party		Seats
Republicans
		Republican Union	130
		Republican Left	130
Right
		Bonapartists	104
		Legitimists	44
		Orleanists	11
Others
			49
Total			521

1. Gildea, R., Children of the Revolution, London, 2008, p. 253-254

Sources

• Roi et President