Exactly half of French President-elect, Emmanuel Macron’s parliamentary election candidates are women.
Of the 428 candidates announced so far, 50 per cent are women, in a bid towards gender equality.
Macron’s party, La Republique En Marche (Republic on the Move), have also revealed that 52 per cent of the candidates come from outside the political circle. The candidates are also of varying ages – the youngest being 24-years-old while the oldest is 72.
Around ten of the candidates are unemployed, 20 are retired and a number are students. Ex-bullfighter, Marie Sara; a gifted mathematician, Cédric Villani; and farmer Jean-Baptiste Moreau are among the candidates chosen.
The party’s latest announcements appears to fulfil their pledge set in January, that half of its candidates would be women and half would be from outside the political establishment.
However, Macron still needs to select over 100 candidates for the 577-seat parliament to fulfil his pledge to field a candidate in all constituencies.
Macron will become the youngest President in French history at 39 and the youngest French head of state since Napoleon.
Macron has said that he is “neither of the Left or the Right”, but is “for France.” According to the party’s secretary-general, Richard Ferrand, the political candidates represent, “the definitive return of citizens to the heart of our political life.”
