ECONOMYNEXT — President Emanuel Macron’s gamble in calling a snap poll somewhat paid off after a left-wing alliance secured the highest number of seats in the French parliament, effectively defeating an alliance led by the far-right National Rally.
The Economist reported that Marine Le Pen’s National Rally (RN)-led bloc, which was widely anticipated to top the voting, will now end up in third place, securing 134 to 152 seats. However, this is still a major win for the once-fringe party which only held 88 seats in the outgoing parliament, indicating the mainstreaming of its hard-right ideology.
A left-wing alliance led by Jean-Luc Melenchon is projected to have secured 171-187 seats after what CNN has called tactical voting in Sunday’s second round election. CNN noted that France will be left in political limbo after no party came close to winning an absolute majority.
Unable to call a new election for at least another year, and with three years left of his term, President Emmanuel Macron looks set to preside over an unruly parliament, as problems mount at home and abroad, reported CNN.
The Associated Press (AP) reported that the outcome has left France, a pillar of the European Union and Olympic host country, facing the stunning prospect of a hung parliament and political paralysis.
The political turmoil could rattle markets and the French economy, the EU’s second-largest, and have far-ranging implications for the war in Ukraine, global diplomacy and Europe’s economic stability, reported AP.
The Economist predicted that President Macron’s centrist coalition Ensemble will hold 152-163 seats, making it the second largest bloc in the French parliament.
“Though painful, this is not quite the calamity that had been widely expected. His bloc looks likely to become the second-biggest, slightly ahead of the RN, and his group of deputies could now hold the key either to forming a governing coalition or to keeping a minority left-wing government in power,” the Economist noted. (Colombo/Jul08/2024)