Seat projections however are conjectural at this stage and dependent on political decisions taken in the coming days ahead of the second round of voting on July 7.
France is voting in a crucial snap election that potentially could have a resounding impact across Europe and on the markets. The far right, which is skeptical of France’s role in NATO and the EU, has never been closer to power and stands a good chance of forming a ‘cohabitation’ government under Macron’s presidency. Macron himself is due to stay in power until the end of his mandate in 2027, regardless of the outcome of this election.
On Sunday, the French president called for “democratic and republican” forces to unite against Le Pen’s party. “Faced with the [rise of the] National Rally, we need to foster a wide unity that is clearly democratic and republican ahead of the second round,” Macron said, according to a statement from the Elysée Palace. “The high turnout … shows how important the vote was for our fellow citizens, and how they want to clarify the political situation.”
Turnout in the parliamentary vote was much higher than during previous elections, at 59.5 percent at 5pm Paris time, according to France’s interior ministry.
The French president shocked the nation and France’s international allies when he triggered the vote only a couple of weeks before the Olympic Games, after a humiliating defeat in June’s European parliament election.
It was an audacious move designed to stop the far right advance in its tracks by forcing French voters to choose a new parliament. On the strength of the early projections so far, his gamble looks set to fail.
This developing story is being updated.
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#Pens #set #big #win #French #election #POLITICO