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The current Constitution of France was adopted on October 4, 1958, and has been amended 18 times, most recently on February 19, 2007, the last amendment consisting of a triple revision of the Constitution : the abolition of the death penalty was inscribed into the Constitution, the penal status of the President of the Republic was modified, and the electoral college of New Caledonia was frozen to its 1998 level for territorial elections. The constitution is typically called the Constitution of the Fifth Republic, and replaced that of the Fourth Republic dating from October 27, 1946. Charles de Gaulle was its main instigator; the constitution was drafted by Michel Debré.