France

The municipal council (Conseil municipal) is composed of councillors elected on a closed list model, by direct universal suffrage for a six-year term.  In municipalities with 1,000 inhabitants and over, elections are based on a closed list proportional and two rounds of voting model, with a majority bonus granted to the list that comes first. This deliberative assembly is headed by the mayor.

The mayor and his/her deputies represent the municipality's executive branch. The mayor and the deputy mayors are elected by and from within the municipal council for a six-year mandate. The mayor and by delegation the deputy mayors are in charge of the municipal administration.

The municipality is since 2015 the only tier of local government which benefits from a general competences clause: they can intervene over and above their competencies in all fields of local interest.

Since 2014, all municipalities are part of an intercommunal structure. The total number of intercommunal structure is 1253 (1st January 2021). These structures have competences allocated to them by the municipalities on a voluntary basis, or directly imposed by law.

There are different types of intercommunal structures:
 

The City of Paris is both a department and a municipality. Lyon Metropole has also a specific status as it has the competences of the department on its territory.

Traditional competences:
 

 

Core decentralised competences:
 

The county council (Conseil départemental) is the department's deliberative body. It is composed of members elected by direct universal suffrage for a six-year term. The council elects its president among its members and is composed of specialised committees. The county councils are subdelegate managing authorities of the European social funds (ESF). Since a reform in 2014, the delegates are elected as a gender balanced duo so that each council is composed of the same number of men and women.

The president of the council is the department's executive authority. He/she is assisted by a permanent committee composed of vice-presidents and members of the different political parties.

Competences:
 

The regional council (Conseil régional) is the deliberative body of the region. It is composed of regional councillors elected by direct universal suffrage for a six-year term. The regional council elects its president from among its members. Since 2014, regional councils are the managing authorities of the major part of the European structural funds, instead of the State.

The permanent committee is the region’s deliberative body, which assists the council in the execution of some of its competences. The vice-presidents are members of the permanent commissionand the opposition is represented by proportionality.

The president and the vice-presidents are elected from among the members of the regional council for a six-year period. There are the region's executive body and are at the head of the regional administration. The president's functions are similar to those of the president of the county council.
 
Competences: