Political plurality: Arcom publishes its report on the local election campaign and sets out the procedures for measuring speaking time allocated to political figures

The March 2026 local election campaign

Arcom has today published its report on the coverage of the local elections by audiovisual media and online platforms.

Overall compliance with the rules applicable to audiovisual media during the campaign period

Throughout the entire period of coverage of the municipal election campaign, Arcom did not identify any breaches of the requirement for balanced airtime that would have necessitated firm intervention by the regulator. It commends the efforts of broadcasters to play their full part in democratic life.

Broadcasters as a whole also complied with their other obligations during the election period: providing balanced and honest information in reports, commentaries and programmes relating to the elections, observing the ‘silence period’, etc.

However, Arcom issued a formal notice to the CNews channel for diffusion, on 20 March 2026 – two days before the second round and a few hours before the start of the electoral silence period – a documentary entitled ‘ Rachida Dati sets out to conquer Paris ’, followed by a programme on set. Following an investigation, Arcom considered that this documentary and the subsequent discussions demonstrated a lack of balance and fairness in the commentary and coverage of the campaign, constituting a breach of the channel’s obligations.

Details of the formal notice issued to CNews

The campaign on digital platforms

In its report, Arcom provides an inventory of the actions taken by online platforms, the authorities (including Arcom itself) and the government bodies involved in the election. Whilst the relationship developed with the providers of very large platforms has proved valuable for safeguarding digital public debate and the integrity of the election, this cooperation will need to be strengthened in the run-up to the 2027 presidential election.

The Authority also emphasises the importance of ensuring greater effectiveness of the transparency tools provided for in the Digital Services Act (DSA), in particular access to platform data (Article 40) and strengthening of ad library transparency (Article 39), in order to strengthen the analysis of systemic risks linked to disinformation and to adapt the actions of Arcom and its partners accordingly.

Arcom will publish its notices in the autumn regarding the audiovisual media and digital platforms in the run-up to the 2027 presidential election.

Clarifications regarding the measurement of speaking time for political figures

Arcom is today publishing a list of frequently asked questions setting out, in the light of recent case law, the criteria applicable for identifying political figures whose speaking time in the audiovisual media must be recorded.

It reiterates that it is the responsibility of broadcasters to identify these political figures, record their speaking time and submit this information to Arcom. This data is then verified by the Authority and published monthly on the arcom.frwebsite .

Frequently Asked Questions

At its plenary meeting on 30 June 2026, the Arcom Board also decided to no longer take into account appearances by political figures shown at night. This decision will come into effect from 1 October 2026. In the meantime, Arcom will work in consultation with broadcasters to adapt its monitoring of speaking time so that their ability to host political figures and foster political debate is not affected.