Parties of the Right and Center dominated French politics from 1974 through 1988. Voting patterns fluctuated more from 1981 to 1988 than they did from 1962 to 1967. The Left never received more than 52 percent of the vote. The Left's best showing came in the 1988 legislative election. The strongest support for the Right and Center came in the 1981 legislative election.
Citizens vote for individual candidates.
Citizens may give proportions of their vote to different parties. Such systems tend to encourage a proliferation of small parties. Such systems make it likely that a single party will obtain a majority of seats. Such systems can produce a large change in seats with only a small change in votes. Small parties do well in proportional systems because they need not gain a majority in any one area or region to gain representation. .