Built on an in-depth analysis of the existing scientific literature, the article underscores the necessity to study whether or not candidate' eva- luation by voters affects voting behavior – i.e.
the candidate effect hypothesis – and particularly in the case of the French parliamentary elections, a least likely case study. Evidence drawn from a survey dedicated to this purpose during the par- liamentary elections of June 2012 supports the hypothesis of a candidate effect in France, which has to be added to the explanatory factors usually used in the scientific literature. Beyond parti- sanship and ideology, candidates matter when citi- zens vote in parliamentary elections.