Alsace First
Alsace First, formerly the Alsatian Regionalist Movement from 1998 to 2002, is a political party based in Alsace, France, established in 1989. It promotes autonomy for Alsace in France.
The party is considered far-right by many observers due to its strong stance against immigration, its opposition to Turkish entry into the European Union and its affirmation of an Alsatian national identity. The party is opposed to French centralizing Jacobin attitudes and favours decentralization, fiscal and political autonomy for Alsace, and bilingualism in the region. It is often compared to the stronger Lega Nord in Italy.
In the 2004 French [regional elections], the party won 9.42% of the vote but failed to win seats. It had 9 seats in the Alsace regional council from 1998 to 2004 due to an electoral system more favourable to smaller parties than the current system, adopted in 2003. The party has one seat in the Haut-Rhin general council, held by Christian Chaton in the canton of Sainte-Marie-aux-Mines.
The leader of ADA is Jacques Cordonnier, who replaced Robert Spieler in 2008. Spieler had been a National Front deputy in the French National Assembly between 1986 and 1988.
Electoral results
Legislative elections
In the 2017 legislative elections, the party put forward two candidates. Jacques Cordonnier ran in the 4th constituency of Bas-Rhin, the so-called "Strasbourg-Campaign" while Catherine Dahmane ran in Sundgau. The candidates ran on the withdrawal of Alsace from the Grand Est administrative region, the merging of the council areas of Bas-Rhin and Haut-Rhin, the preservation of local law, an increased decentralisation of the education system, the promotion of French-German bilingualism, the cancellation of the construction of the GCO motorway and the preservation of the free use of the A35.| Constituency | Candidate | Vote | % |
| Bas-Rhin 4th | Jacques Cordonnier | 1 039 | 2.26 |
| Haut-Rhin 3rd | Catherine Dahmane | 1 046 | 2.68 |
Senate elections
During the 2014 [French Senate election|2014 senatorial elections], Alsace First allied itself with other regionalists, under the banner: 'Alsace, a common passion'. In the Bas-Rhin region, Denis Lieb received 25 votes, or 0.95% of the vote, while in the Haut-Rhin region, Jacques Cordonnier received 16 votes, or 0.84% of the vote. The coalition did not obtain any elected representatives.European elections
Alsace First has never participated in the European elections.Regional elections
Score and number of seats obtained in the Alsace regional elections:- 1992–1998: 6%, 2 seats
- 1998–2004: 5.9%, 9 seats.
Canton and regional elections
In the canton elections of 20 and 27 March 2011, the movement only ran 2 candidates. They both ran in the Bas-Rhin region:
- Jacques Cordonnier, Strasbourg canton 6: received 6.40% of the vote.
- Karl Goschescheck, Illkirch-Graffenstaden canton: received 4.27% of the vote.
In the 2015 regional elections, the party ran a duo in the Bas-Rhin region.
| Canton | Candidates | Vote | % |
| Strasbourg-6 | Jacques Cordonnier Renée Kuss | 611 | 5.50 |