The essentials
Nationwide turnout was put at 410,000 by the ministry and 800,000 by the CGT, with close to 1,000 arrests.
Nationwide mobilisation on 24 October over purchasing power and public services produced differing turnout estimates. The interior ministry put turnout at 410,000, while the CGT union counted 800,000. A separate count recorded about 35,000 demonstrators across France at midday.
Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez deployed 70,000 police and gendarmes for the day. By 13:00, 135 arrests had been recorded nationwide. Later reporting puts the total at close to 1,000 arrests across the day's demonstrations.
The available material does not explain the methods behind either turnout estimate, or how the midday count relates to the full-day figures. It also does not state how many arrests led to charges or give a city-by-city breakdown.
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Government Figures Put Turnout Well Below Union Estimate
The interior ministry estimated nationwide turnout at 410,000 on 24 October. Alongside that figure, authorities deployed 70,000 police and gendarmes, and close to 1,000 arrests were recorded across the day's demonstrations. The ministry's count is the lower of the two published estimates, and the reporting does not describe how it was produced.
Union Figures Put Turnout Nearly Double the Ministry Count
The CGT union counted 800,000 participants across France on 24 October, nearly twice the ministry's estimate of 410,000. The day also saw 70,000 police and gendarmes deployed and 135 arrests logged by 13:00, with close to 1,000 arrests reported by the end of the day. The union's method of counting is not set out in the available reporting.