By Muslim Mirror Staff
The coalition of the French left has emerged as the leading force in the high-stakes legislative elections held on July 8, surpassing a surge from the far-right but falling short of a majority. The election saw French Muslims in alliance with left parties help elect 19 Muslim lawmakers to the Parliament, ensuring a defeat for the extreme right. Among those elected are 12 female lawmakers.
Muslims, who represent 10% of the French population according to the national statistics bureau, now have a representation of approximately 3.29% in the Parliament. This is a notable increase, though it still lags behind the UK, where 25 Muslim MPs were elected to the House of Commons, representing 3.84% of the Parliament against 6.0% of the population.
The New Popular Front leftist coalition secured just over 180 seats, taking the lead ahead of President Emmanuel Macron’s centrist alliance, which garnered more than 160 seats. Marine Le Pen’s far-right and its allies finished in third place with over 140 seats, a significant increase from their previous best of 89 seats in 2022. The far-right had promised a “cultural battle” against Islam.
The French National Assembly comprises 577 deputies, each elected by a single-member constituency through a two-round system, requiring 289 seats for a majority.
Below is the list of the newly elected Muslim lawmakers. France, in line with its secularism, does not announce the religion of its elected representatives.
- Farida Amrani – La France Insoumise, representing Essonne’s constituency.
- Anchya Bamana – National Rally, representing Mayotte’s 2nd constituency.
- Belkhir Belhaddad – La République En Marche! (LREM) and Territories of Progress (TDP), representing Moselle.
- Anais Belouassa-Cherifi – La France Insoumise, representing Rhône’s 1st constituency.
- Karim Ben Cheïkh – Tunisia-born, representing the 9th constituency for French residents overseas.
- Karim Benbrahim – Socialist Party, representing Loire-Atlantique’s 1st constituency.
- Soumya Bourouaha – French Communist Party, representing Seine-Saint-Denis’s 4th constituency.
- Dieynaba Diop – Socialist Party, representing Yvelines’ 9th constituency.
- Aly Diouara – representing Seine-Saint-Denis.
- Benjamin Haddad – Renaissance party, representing Paris’s 14th constituency.
- Ayda Hadizadeh – Elected in Val-d’Oise’s 2nd constituency.
- Zahia Hamdane –
- Timothée Houssin – National Rally, representing Eure’s 5th constituency.
- Abdelkader Lahmar – Elected in Rhône.
- Amelia Amal Lakrafi – La République En Marche! (LREM), representing the 10th district for French people living abroad.
- Hanane Mansouri – The Republicans, representing Isère’s 8th constituency.
- Naima Moutchou – La République En Marche! (LREM), representing Val-d’Oise.
- Sabrina Sebaihi – The Ecologists, representing Hauts-de-Seine’s 4th constituency.
- Estelle Youssouffa – Elected from Mayotte’s 1st constituency.