In a plebiscite in 1870, the Empire was acclaimed by seven and a half million voters. By the time of the first elections of the third Republic in 1871 however, the Bonapartists polled only 100,000 votes. By 1873 their fortunes seem to have revived somewhat, with what was considered to be a realistic possibility of Napoleon III returning to reclaim the Imperial title. By 1877, they had risen from a low of twenty seats in the assembly to secure one hundred and four. At the end of the decade however, the Bonapartists were clearly in decline, having fallen back to...
of support than a recreation, as memories of the war died down and old loyalties to the Empire seemed stronger than ties to the new Republic. Bonapartism's disappearance at the end of the decade appears to be connected to its lack of direction and of a convincing leader. Gradually, support for the Republic grew and the Bonapartists came to have less distinguishing them from the other right wing groups. By 1876, the Republicans had a clear majority in the Chamber of Deputies and eventually, Republican links with the royalist parties grew to a level where the three groups merged.