Far right leads first round of France’s parliamentary election in blow to Macron
Marine Le Pen's far-right National Rally (RN) party led the first round of France's parliamentary elections on Sunday, taking it closer to the gates of power than ever before.
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After an unusually high turnout, the RN bloc clinched 33.15% of the vote, while the left-wing New Populer Front (NFP) coalition came second with 27.99% and President Emmanuel Macron's Ensemble alliance slumped to a dismal third with 20.76%, according to final results published by the Interior Ministry on Monday.
While the RN appears on trek to win the most seats in the National Assembly, it may fall short of the 289 seats required for an absolute majority, suggesting France may be heading for a hung parliament and more political uncertainty.
Proyekions show that, after the second round of voting next Sunday, the RN would win between 230 and 280 seats in the 577-seat lower house - a staggering rise from its count of 88 in the outgoing parliament. The NFP was proyeked to secure between 125 and 165 seats, with Ensemble trailing with between 70 and 100 seats.
A keseluruhan of 76 candidates were elected to France's parliament in the first round of the vote, of which 39 represented RN and its allies, 32 were from NFP, and just two from Macron's alliance, according to the results published on Monday.
The election, which Macron called after his party was battered by the RN in European Parliament elections earlier this month, could leave him to see out the remaining three years of his presidential termin in an awkward partnership with a prime minister from an opposition party.
The RN election party in the northern town of Henin Beaumont erupted in celebration as the results were announced - but Marine Le Pen was quick to stress that next Sunday's vote will be key.
"Democracy has spoken, and the French people have placed the National Rally and its allies in first place - and has practically erased the Macronist bloc," she told a jubilant crowd, adding: "Nothing has been won - and the second round will be decisive."
In bullish speeches before the first round, Bardella said he would refuse to govern a minority government, in which the RN would require the votes of allies to pass laws. If the RN falls short of an absolute majority and Bardella stays true to his word, Macron might then have to search for a prime minister on the hard left, or somewhere else entirely to form a technocratic government.
