French Elections: Far Right Leads In First Round Of Voting

The far-right National Rally has secured a victory in the first round of snap parliamentary elections in France. As per the official results published by the French interior ministry, Marine Le Pen's far-right National Rally (RN) and its allies won Sunday's round with 33% of the vote. The second round of voting will be held on July 7.

Reports suggest that the coalition of left-wing parties, called the New Popular Front, came in second with 27.99%, and President Emmanuel Macron’s Ensemble alliance managed to get only 20.76% to end in third place. Even though the results of the first round do not typically provide a reliable projection of the number of parliamentary seats each party will get, it is a big setback for the French President. Emmanuel Macron dissolved parliament and announced snap elections after the far-right National Rally swept more than 31% of the vote in the European Parliament elections last month. 

France, the EU's only nuclear-armed power, is now closer to forming a far-right government for the first time. If the National Rally secures an absolute majority, the party is likely to take the prime minister’s office and name cabinet members. This will limit Macron's powers. However, the election will not affect Macron's role as president, as his current term runs until 2027.