ABSTRACT
The regional elections were also held according to a proportional representation system, which encouraged the dominance of the parties, and within departmental voting districts, thereby sparing party machines any serious effort to adapt the composition of their lists to the regional nature of the election. The opportunity for new personalities, connected neither with the party system nor with local notables, to enter the political arena was denied in practice. The overrepresentation of public sector employees compared with those from the private sector is a noteworthy distortion, probably explained by the greater availability of the former to take up political office. The Observatoire Interregional du Politique surveys also reveal the gradual emergence of a regional identity among the new elites. Immediately after being elected, regional councillors were cautious regarding the significance of their mandate and the future of the region.
