Capitalnome: Paris coordenadas geográficas: 48 52 N, 2 20 E diferença do tempo: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October Independência486 (Frankish tribes unified); 843 (Western Francia established from the division of the Carolingian Empire) Feriado nacionalFete de la Federation, 14 Julho (1790); note - although often incorrectly referred to as Bastille Day, the celebration actually commemorates the holiday held on the first anniversary of the storming of the Bastille (on 14 Julho 1789) and the establishment of a constitutional monarchy; other names for the holiday are Fete Nationale (National Holiday) and quatorze juillet (14th of Julho) Constituciónadotada by referendum 28 Setembro 1958, efectiva 4 Outubro 1958 note: emendada concerning election of president in 1962; emendada to comply with provisions of 1992 EC Maastricht Treaty, 1997 Amsterdam Treaty, 2003 Treaty of Nice; emendada to tighten immigration laws in 1993; emendada in 2000 to change the seven-year presidential term to a five-year term; emendada in 2005 to make the EU constitutional treaty compatible with the Constitution of France and to ensure that the decision to ratify EU accession treaties would be made by referendum Sufrágio18 anos de idade; universal Poder Executivochefe do estado: Presidente Nicolas SARKOZY (desde 16 May 2007) cabeça de governo: Prime Minister Francois FILLON (desde 17 May 2007) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president at the suggestion of the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (changed from seven-year term in October 2000); election last held 22 April and 6 May 2007 (next to be held spring 2012); prime minister nominated by the National Assembly majority and appointed by the president election results: Nicolas SARKOZY wins the election; First Round: percent of vote - Nicolas SARKOZY 31.18%, Segolene ROYAL 25.87%, Francois BAYROU 18.57%, Jean-Marie LE PEN 10.44%, others 13.94%; Second Round: SARKOZY 53.1% and ROYAL 46.9% |