Volumetric irradiation by a short‐pulse electron beam has been used to trigger long‐duration spatially uniform electric discharges in gas mixtures of He and F2or SF6. Uniform energy deposition to 300 J/liter has been observed for atmospheric F2&sngbnd;He mixtures at nominal electron‐beam currents of 3 A/cm2and discharge currents up to 20 A/cm2. Operation suitable for efficient initiation of pulsed HF/DF chain lasers appears possible over a wide range ofE/Nand mixture ratios, limited by breakdown at largeE/Nand negligible field enhancement at lowE/N. Approximate analytical plasma models are presented and used in conjunction with time‐resolved afterglow current measurements to obtain rate constants for F−‐ionF2+−ionrecombination andF2+−ionelectron recombination. Estimates of F2dissociation fractions achieved in the experiments imply the possibility of scalable and efficient initiation of pulsed chemical lasers with such discharges.