Marine Le Pen’s National Rally (RN) is strengthening its position in French politics. After this past weekend’s Senate elections, the party and its allies now have a total of 14 seats – enough, for the first time, to form their own group in the French Senate. The result means that RN has nearly quadrupled its representation in the chamber and now has greater opportunities to influence parliamentary work ahead of the 2027 presidential election.

“It is a historic victory and an important milestone,” wrote Marine Le Pen after the election, according to The Guardian.

The French Senate consists of 348 members and, together with the National Assembly, forms the country’s parliament. Unlike the National Assembly, senators are not directly elected by voters but by an electoral college that is largely made up of locally elected officials, including mayors and municipal politicians.

Half of the senators are elected every three years for six-year terms. In Sunday’s election, nine senators from RN were elected. The party already held three seats from the 2023 election. In addition, two senators from Éric Ciotti’s allied party, Union des droites pour la République (UDR), were elected.

This cooperation results in a total of 14 seats, surpassing the 10-seat threshold required to form an official group in the Senate. Such a group grants, among other things, more resources, longer speaking time, and greater representation in the Senate’s various bodies. Reuters also described the result as the first time RN has succeeded in establishing its own group in the upper house.

Breakthrough Among Local Politicians As Well

RN entered the Senate for the first time in 2014, when the party was still called the National Front, but has historically found it much more difficult to establish itself there than in directly elected assemblies.

The Senate election is therefore particularly interesting as the distribution of seats largely reflects the parties’ support among France’s local politicians.

According to Le Monde, the success demonstrates that RN’s increased support in small and medium-sized towns is now also being reflected in the Senate. The party has also gained backing from independent mayors in rural areas.

RN’s Sébastien Chenu described the election result as a boost ahead of the presidential election.

“There is no longer a glass ceiling,” he said.

Traditional Right Retains Control

Despite RN’s success, the balance of power in the Senate is not dramatically changed. The traditional right and the centre retain control of the chamber. Les Républicains remains the largest force, and the Senate’s long-standing president, Gérard Larcher, is expected to continue in his position.

The left also made a symbolic step forward. Jean-Luc Mélenchon’s La France Insoumise gained its first senator when Gabriel Amard was elected in Rhône.

RN is already the single largest opposition force in the National Assembly and has the largest French delegation in the European Parliament. The Senate, however, has until now remained the part of the national parliament where the party has had the weakest representation.

The new Senate result comes just under a year ahead of the 2027 presidential election, where Marine Le Pen is once again a candidate. Emmanuel Macron cannot run for a third consecutive term.