French Fifth Republic of the election on 9 January 1959. The new president began his office on that date, appointing Michel Debré as Prime Minister. The 1958 constitution also replaced the French Union with the French Community, which allowed fourteen member territories (these did not include Algeria) to assert their independence. 1960 became known as the "Year of Africa" because of this wave of newly independent states. Algeria became independent on 5 July 1962. The president was initially elected by an electoral college, but in 1962 de Gaulle proposed that the president be directly elected by the citizens, and held a referendum on
15th legislature of the French Fifth Republic 15th legislature of the French Fifth Republic The 15th legislature of the French Fifth Republic () is a parliamentary cycle that commenced on 21 June 2017 following the legislative elections on 11 and 18 June 2017. The party of the president Emmanuel Macron, La République En Marche! (REM), obtained an absolute majority of 308 deputies, alongside its ally, the Democratic Movement (MoDem), which secured 42 seats. The new deputies elected François de Rugy the President of the National Assembly when it first convened on 27 June. The legislative elections saw a record level of renewal, with only a quarter of