1965 French presidential election 1965 French presidential election The 1965 French presidential election, held on 5 December and 19 December, was the first direct presidential election in the Fifth Republic and the first since the Second Republic in 1848. It had been widely expected that incumbent president Charles de Gaulle would be re-elected, but the election was notable for the unexpectedly strong performance of his left-wing challenger François Mitterrand. This was the second presidential election since the beginning of the Fifth Republic. Under the first draft of the 1958 constitution, the president was elected by an electoral college, in order to appease concerns about
Provisional Government of the French Republic Following the elections for a new Chamber of parliament held on 10 November 1946, former Popular Front leader Leon Blum became the Chairman of the last interim government on 16 December. One month later, Vincent Auriol succeeded Blum as President of the Republic, marking the entry into force of the institutions of the Fourth Republic. Provisional Government of the French Republic The Provisional Government of the French Republic ("gouvernement provisoire de la République française" or GPRF) was an interim government of Free France between 1944 and 1946 following the liberation of continental France after Operations "Overlord" and "Dragoon", and lasted