Can an S file sit in the National Assembly?

The president of the Republicans, Eric Ciotti, joins forces with the National Rally (RN). Jordan Bardella or Jean-Luc Mélenchon in the running for Matignon. François Hollande makes his return to politics… Since the surprise dissolution of the National Assembly by Emmanuel Macron on the evening of the European elections, a crazy political sequence has opened in which nothing seems impossible. As part of the new union of the left, France Insoumise (LFI) has even invested in an S file for the early legislative elections.

Spokesperson for the Young Guard, Raphaël Arnault is in fact a candidate for the legislative elections on June 30 and July 7 in Avignon. Members of this far-left movement “generally come from the anarcho-libertarian movement”explained political scientist Jean-Yves Camus in an investigation by Figaro dedicated to this small violent group. With another activist from the same group, this 29-year-old young man was, for example, accused of having attacked a right-wing activist. He is close to Taha Bouhafs who was convicted of racist insults against police officer Linda Kebbab.

Above all, this close friend of Olivier Besancenot and Philippe Poutou is on S file. Information which sparked strong reactions. To the point that the local left decided to support another candidate in the face of this young man judged “too extremist”. Beyond these local dissensions, could the fact of being on S file not hinder the entry of this Raphaël Arnault to the Palais Bourbon?

Read alsoAlain Malraux: “Dissolution, a salutary electroshock?”

A simple intelligence tool

Being on S file does not mean that you are subject to criminal prosecution or sanctions. The S sheet is also not an arrest warrant and does not necessarily imply active surveillance. It is above all an administrative measure requested by the courts, the police or the gendarmerie. Concretely, the S file is a subdivision of the Wanted Persons File (FPR) which according to the public service website, “used to search, monitor or control certain people“. 580,000 people are registered with the FPR, including more than 30,000 S files, according to figures from the information report by former senator LR François Pillet in December 2018.

In total, the FPR has around 642,000 files (the same person can be the subject of several files). There are other categories of forms than the S forms, such as the M (runaway minors) or V (escaped) form. Often mentioned in connection with terrorism cases, the S sheet concerns any person who could harm “state security”: terrorists of course, but also violent ecologists or activists of small extremist political groups, as is the case by Raphaël Arnault. Basically, it is a simple intelligence tool available to the administration.

Read also2022 legislative campaign: Éric Ciotti targeted by an investigation for “embezzlement of public funds”

Pushback effect on voters?

The law clearly defines the criteria for ineligibility. Only people who have been sentenced to the loss of their civil rights by the courts are prohibited from submitting their candidacy and therefore from being elected. According to the Ministry of the Interior, this legal decision can be pronounced by the administrative judge or the Constitutional Council for elected officials who have not met their obligations in terms of campaign accounts or declaration of assets.

The S form therefore in no way prevents you from running for an election or being elected. We can even imagine that certain deputies elected during the last legislatures were on S file without even knowing it. Indeed, the FRP file is confidential and is theoretically not intended to be made public. The fact remains that Raphaël Arnault can therefore run for the legislative elections and, in the event of victory, become a deputy. On the other hand, it is not impossible that the existence of this S file, now that it has been revealed in the press, could harm the image of Raphaël Arnault and weigh against him among the voters of the first constituency of Vaucluse.