PARIS (AP) — The far-right National Rally surged into a commanding lead in France’s first round of legislative elections on Sunday, according to projections by polling agencies. This development brings the party closer to potentially forming a government in the second round, delivering a significant blow to centrist President Emmanuel Macron and his decision to call a surprise ballot.
Macron dissolved the National Assembly on June 9, following a defeat by the National Rally in the European Parliament elections. He had hoped that the anti-immigration party, with its historical ties to antisemitism, would not replicate its success in a national context. However, the gamble did not pay off. Projections indicate that the National Rally and its allies secured about one-third of the national vote on Sunday.
Prime Minister Gabriel Attal warned that France could face its first far-right government since World War II if voters do not unite against the National Rally in the second round next Sunday. “The extreme right is at the doors of power,” Attal said, describing National Rally policies as “disastrous” and urging voters to ensure that “not one vote should go to the National Rally.”
Projections place Macron’s centrist coalition in a distant third, trailing both the National Rally and a new left-wing coalition formed to prevent the far-right from gaining power. A parliamentary majority would allow National Rally leader Marine Le Pen to appoint her 28-year-old protégé, Jordan Bardella, as prime minister, marking a significant milestone in her efforts to rebrand the party and make it more palatable to mainstream voters.
Le Pen inherited the party, then known as the National Front, from her father, Jean-Marie Le Pen, who has multiple convictions for racist and antisemitic hate speech. Addressing a jubilant crowd waving French tricolor flags, Le Pen called on her supporters and those who did not vote for her party in the first round to help secure a legislative majority. This would force Bardella and Macron into an awkward power-sharing arrangement. Macron, first elected in 2017, has stated he will not step down before his term ends in 2027.
“The French have almost wiped out the ‘Macronist’ bloc,” Le Pen said, interpreting the results as a sign of voters’ “willingness to turn the page after seven years of contemptuous and corrosive power.”
Early official results showed significant far-right successes. Le Pen was one of six National Rally candidates who won outright in the Pas-de-Calais region, securing more than 50% of the vote in their districts, thus avoiding a second-round ballot. National Rally candidates also led in all six other districts in the region heading into the second round.
In Le Pen’s district, 54-year-old voter Magali Quere said she used to find the far right scary “but not anymore.” The second round will determine whether Le Pen’s party and its allies can secure the absolute majority needed to form a government and implement their policies, which include dismantling many of Macron’s key initiatives and halting French military support to Ukraine.
The far right’s confrontational stance towards the European Union, plans to reverse Macron’s pension reforms, and promises to boost voter spending power without clear funding strategies could unsettle European financial markets. Opponents fear for civil liberties under a National Rally government. Macron has warned that the far right could lead France towards civil war, citing their plans to increase police powers and curb immigration, which alarm many, including minorities. The National Rally has long been hostile towards France’s Muslim community.
“People don’t understand that this will impact us for years and years. This is a France of hate that is growing, not a France of solidarity and union,” said Cynthia Fefoheio, a 19-year-old political science student protesting the National Rally in Paris.
Some projections suggest that the National Rally and its allies could secure the 289 seats needed for a majority in the 577-seat National Assembly. However, they might also fall short, leading to a fragmented parliament. The two-round voting system complicates predictions.
Opponents of the far right are already strategizing to concentrate votes against the National Rally in the second round, with plans to withdraw candidates in some districts to boost the chances of defeating far-right rivals.
The high turnout, estimated at 66%, reversed nearly three decades of declining voter interest in the first round of legislative elections. The high stakes and quick campaign galvanized the electorate, with many voters seeing an opportunity to impose a government on Macron and force a change in direction. Many are frustrated with inflation, economic concerns, and Macron’s leadership, which they perceive as arrogant and disconnected from their lives.
The National Rally tapped into this discontent, particularly through online platforms like TikTok, focusing on the rising cost of living and immigration. The campaign was marred by increasing hate speech. “People don’t like what has been happening,” said Cynthia Justine, 44. “People feel they’ve lost a lot in recent years. People are angry. I am angry.”
The National Rally has questioned the right to citizenship for people born in France and aims to curtail the rights of dual nationals, which critics argue undermines human rights and threatens France’s democratic ideals.
At a celebration in Le Pen’s stronghold of Henin-Beaumont, 41-year-old Edouard Guillebot said the far right’s success had been a long time coming. “This is a revenge of the people against the elites, in the media and politics,” he said. “I am of those who have voted for everyone. They lied to us by telling us immigration was a chance for the country.”
Source: Associated Press
