All you need to know on the election for the Assembly for French from Abroad (AFE)

3 min read

On Sunday 28 June 2026, councillors to the Assembly of French Citizens Abroad (AFE) will be elected across the entire French consular network. For the Northern Europe constituency — which includes the United Kingdom, Ireland, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, the Baltic States, Iceland and Greenland — eight seats are to be filled.

Unlike most elections, this vote is not open to all French citizens living outside France. Only the Councillors for French Citizens Abroad, elected during the consular elections of May 2026, are entitled to vote. Since the reform of the representation of French citizens abroad, introduced by Act No. 2013-659 of 22 July 2013, members of the Assembly of French Citizens Abroad are elected by indirect suffrage by an electoral college composed exclusively of these councillors. The latter represent their fellow citizens before diplomatic and consular posts before designating the councillors who will sit in the Assembly.

The Assembly of French Citizens Abroad is the representative body for French citizens established outside France. It serves as a consultative assembly to the Government. Its 90 members are elected for a six-year term and meet twice a year for a week in Paris, in order to bring to the fore the concerns of French communities around the world and to put forward proposals on subjects such as consular services, French education abroad, social protection, taxation, security and civic participation.

In the Northern Europe constituency, four lists have been registered:

Independents, Democrats and Progressives (IDP), bringing together candidates from Renaissance, Horizons and non-affiliated individuals;
Left-wing Social, Democratic and Ecological Union, a momentum of solidarity;
Ecology and Solidarity;
The Independents for Northern Europe.

Drawing up these lists requires considerable coordination across several countries, as the candidates come from different consular councils within the constituency. More surprisingly still, some candidates were elected in other consular constituencies. The law nonetheless permits them to appear on a list in a different AFE constituency in order to complete it. However, they will not be able to vote for the list on which they are standing — they must vote in their own constituency of election. This provision, inherited from the 2013 reform, remains relatively little known and can seem somewhat puzzling.

The in-person vote for councillors in the Northern Europe constituency will take place at the French Consulate General in London on Sunday 28 June, from 10am to 12 noon. However, a large number of voters will already have cast their votes in advance at the consulate of their country of residence, or will have arranged a proxy vote.

In certain countries within the constituency, candidacies have given rise to debate and even to legal challenges. In Ireland in particular, the consular election was marked by controversy surrounding the eligibility of Laurence Hélaili-Chapuis. Re-elected as a Councillor for French Citizens Abroad, she had been removed from the consular electoral roll by the supervisory commission due to questions raised about her place of residence. This decision led to several appeals, including one before the Conseil d'État. Described as an "electoral shambles" by Olivier Bertin, former Councillor for French Citizens Abroad and councillor to the Assembly of French Citizens Abroad, the affair has reignited debate over candidate eligibility criteria and the procedures for scrutinising electoral rolls. Despite these tensions, the various lists continued their campaigns and their participation in the election, illustrating the complexity of these elections organised across several countries.

Although they attract little media coverage, elections to the Assembly of French Citizens Abroad play an essential role in the representation of French citizens living outside France. As of 1 January 2026, 1,784,975 French citizens were registered on the Register of French Citizens Established Abroad — a figure that underscores the importance of this community and the significance of its representation.

Councillors to the Assembly of French Citizens Abroad take part in the work of the Assembly's committees, adopt opinions and resolutions, question the Government and the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs, and contribute to shaping public policies affecting French citizens established outside France.

Beyond the designation of the eight representatives for Northern Europe, this vote will also determine the balance of power between the various political groups that will make up the Assembly of French Citizens Abroad for the next six years. Those elected will have the task of carrying the voice of the nearly two million French citizens living outside France to the public authorities and of defending their interests on subjects as varied as education, social protection, taxation, consular services, security and international mobility.

The results of the vote for the Northern Europe constituency will be known from Sunday afternoon (June 28th)."