The first round of the 2022 French presidential election will be held on April 10; should no candidate secure an absolute majority in one round, a second round will be held between the top two candidates on April 24. President Emmanuel Macron, a centrist who is expected to announce his reelection campaign in early 2022, won his first term in 2017 after defeating far-right opponent Marine Le Pen in a two-round contest. Macron will again face Le Pen as the nationalist hard-right movement remains potent, but they will also be joined on the ballot by far-right television commentator Éric Zemmour. Zemmour, known for his anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim rhetoric and a past conviction for inciting racial hatred, has become increasingly popular even before officially announcing his candidacy in late November. Other candidates have also joined the race. Among them is Valérie Pécresse, head of the Île-de-France region and a Nicolas Sarkozy–era minister, who was nominated by the center-right Republicans as their presidential candidate in early December.

French voters benefit from vibrant democratic processes and strong protections for civil liberties and political rights. However, successive governments have responded to deadly terrorist attacks in recent years by curtailing constitutional protections and empowering law enforcement to infringe upon personal freedoms. Anti-Muslim and anti-immigrant sentiment are rife throughout the country.

Freedom House has identified the following as key digital interference issues to watch ahead of election day:

• Removal of online content: In an attempt to combat election-related disinformation, Parliament passed a law in November 2018 that empowers judges to order the removal of “fake news” within three months of an election. Judges have 48 hours to decide whether appealed content qualifies as false news after receiving a referral from an elected official or everyday citizen. Critics worry that the law, which was twice rejected by the Senate before ultimately passing, could lead to politically motivated takedowns during electoral campaigns.
• Cyberattacks: Macron’s campaign team was targeted with multiple cyberattacks ahead of the 2017 presidential election. Thousands of internal emails and documents from the Macron-led En Marche! (Forward!) movement were leaked online that May, two days before the runoff, as part of a coordinated hacking attack meant to destabilize the race. In a separate incident that April, a hacking group linked to the Russian government reportedly targeted the campaign with a phishing operation. Similar cyberattacks during the 2022 contest could disrupt the political landscape.

France has a score of 85 out of 100, with 100 representing the least vulnerability in terms of election integrity, on Freedom House’s Election Vulnerability Index, which is based on a selection of key election-related indicators. The score reflects a robust democracy with a vibrant media sector and an open online environment, but that nevertheless struggles with police violence against protesters, migrants, and refugees, and antiterrorism legislation that diminishes due process. The country is rated Free in Freedom in the World 2021, with a score of 90 out of 100 with respect to its political rights and civil liberties, and Free in Freedom on the Net 2021, with an internet freedom score of 78 out of 100. To learn more about these annual Freedom House assessments, please visit the France country reports in Freedom in the World and Freedom on the Net.