The 2014 French senate election was held on 28 September 2014 and featured results which saw the senate being reclaimed by the centre-right party Union for a Popular Movement (UMP). The right-wing conservative victory reversed the results which came during the previous 2011 French senate election, which was the first time since the foundation of the Fifth Republic in 1958 that the upper house of the French government had been won by a majority of left-wing candidates. Following the victory of the UMP, Gérard Larcher was nominated and subsequently elected to the position of president of the senate, taking the place of Jean-Pierre Bel who had served in the position following the Socialist Party's senate victory in 2011. The Far-right National Front party also claimed its first two seats in the senate election, which their leader Marine Le Pen described as "a historic victory".

Elections for the National Assembly were held on 10 and 17 June 2012. The Socialist Party combined with its allies to win 331 out of a potential 577 seats. These seats were composed of the Socialist Party winning 280 seats, the Greens winning 17, the Radical Party of the Left winning 12, and the Miscellaneous Left winning 22 seats. Results from the other parties saw the UMP win 194 seats, the Miscellaneous Right win 15, the New-Centre win 12, the Left-Front win 10, the Radical Party win 9, and other Independents win 6.

France held municipal elections on 23 March 2014, in which the results saw the Socialist Party lose control of 155 towns. Overall, the Socialist Party won 40% of the votes, which was only slightly above the record high abstention rate of 36%. Following the results of the municipal election, French President François Hollande announced that he would be changing the Prime Minister in his administration. The French Prime Minister at the time, Jean-Marc Ayrault, promptly resigned publicly on 31 March 2014, and was subsequently replaced by Manuel Valls on 1 April 2014.

On 23 August 2014, one month prior to the French senate election, the French economy minister Arnaud Montebourg criticised President Hollande, citing that France "shouldn't be aligning itself with the obsessions of the German right". The education minister Benoit Hamon also voiced his criticism of Hollande's government. These criticisms arose during a time of low growth for France, during which unemployment was 11%, and economic growth was 0.5%. In response, President Hollande tasked Valls with forming a new government more in line with the government's administration. Valls pledged that the new administration would focus on deficit cuts and pro-business tax reforms. These movements created a divide in the Socialist party, as an increasing number of ministers under Hollande's government agreed with Montebourg's views. Numerous centre-right politicians also called for Montebourg to step down from his position as economy minister.

The 2014 French senate election saw 1,733 candidates run for 178 available seats in the senate. This was the highest number of recorded candidates to date, compared to 1,374 candidates in 2011, and 754 candidates in 2008, showing an increase of roughly 25% from 2011 to 2014. 118 candidates were running for their second consecutive term in the senate. Women made up 42% of candidates, which was slightly lower than the record of 43% set in the 2004 senate election. The youngest and oldest candidates were 24 and 88 years old respectively, with the average age being 55. The French senate has 348 total seats, which had risen from 343 in 2011 to reflect an increase in the total national population.

French Senatorial terms are six years in length, with roughly half of the total 348 positions being renewed every three years. Senators are elected for the country's 101 electoral areas, or departments, in which the number of available seats in each department loosely corresponds to the size of the area. Senators are chosen through elected officials, this including regional and city councillors, mayors, and members of the French National Assembly. Members of the general public do not vote for senate candidates. The elected officials for the 2014 senate election total at 87,092, with municipal council delegates making up approximately 95.5% of all votes. General councillors and regional advisers make up 2.7% and 1.2% of delegates respectively, with the remaining 0.6% being senators and deputies.

Hollande and his socialist government faced heavy criticism as France struggled economically from 2013 to 2014, leading to a period of zero economic growth, high unemployment, an increasing budget deficit, and higher taxes for the French people. Hollande's former partner, Valerie Trierweiler, also described him as power hungry and disdainful towards the poor. This all contributed to a poor public perception of Hollande, leading to him being the most unpopular president in modern French history with a record low approval rating of 13% in 2014. These factors then led to forecasts of a humiliating Socialist Party defeat in the senate.

The Conservative UMP and its allies in the Centrist Union of Democrats and Independents (UDI) claimed 188 seats in the senate election, exceeding the number needed for an absolute majority by 13 seats. The UMP also made net gains of 14 seats, ending with a total of 144, in contrast to the Socialist Party who lost 17 seats, to finish with a grand total of 111. Centre and far left Socialist Allies also lost 9 seats while keeping 30 total, and the Greens were able to retain all 10 of their seats in the senate. Following the results 77% of seats in the senate were taken by men, and 23% were occupied by women.