The demise of the French Communist Party (PCF) has been a recurrent feature of overviews of the Left in France for the past two decades, and yet the Communists survive. This study examines the factors that undermined the position of the PCF as the premier party of France, but also highlights the challenges that the party faces in a society disillusioned with politics, and the new strategies that it is developing in order to revive its fortunes.