Far-right has lost. Results of parliamentary elections in France
Emmanuel Macron and Marine Le Pen (collage by RBC-Ukraine)
In France, the second round of elections to the National Assembly (lower house of parliament) has ended. The party of pro-Russian Marine Le Pen was defeated.
According to the Ifop exit poll, the far-left New Popular Front is unexpectedly expected to win the election, with 180 to 215 seats. Emmanuel Macron's presidential coalition comes in second with 150-180 seats. Le Pen's National Rally party is in third place and can only count on 120-150 seats.
However, none of these three political forces will receive an absolute majority in parliament, which means they will have to negotiate a coalition.
Results of parliamentary elections in France
Jean-Luc Melenchon, the leader of the France Unconquered party, which is part of the left-wing New Popular Front bloc, said that Macron would have to appoint a representative of the left-wing bloc as prime minister, reacting to the exit poll results.
"The president must call the New Popular Front to power," Melenchon said, adding that the president "must admit his defeat."
Meanwhile, Macron called for "caution" as the election results do not answer the question of "who will govern" France, his entourage told AFP.
"The bloc of centrists (of which Macron is the leader - ed.) is very much alive," a source from the French president's entourage told AFP.
French parliamentary elections
In early June, French President Emmanuel Macron announced the dissolution of the lower house of the French parliament after his political force failed in the European Parliament elections (which are usually a marker of whether citizens support the current government).
Since parliamentary elections in France are held under the majority system, they are held in two rounds. The first round was held on June 30, and the second round was held today.
In the first round, the far-right National Rally party, whose formal leader is Marine Le Pen, who is known for her pro-Russian views and statements, received the most support. The second place went to the far-left New Popular Front, while Macron's coalition came in third.
However, the leader of the left-wing radicals, Jean-Luc Melenchon, decided to unite with the presidential coalition to prevent the National Rally candidates from entering parliament in the second round of elections. Thus, they withdrew many of their candidates from the elections in order not to divide the votes between the New Popular Front and Macron's coalition, but to unite them on a single candidate.
While in the first round Le Pen's party won an absolute majority of seats in the French parliament, on the eve of the second round, its position did not look so strong. According to the latest polls, the National Rally, although it will win the election, will not receive an absolute majority and will be forced to look for a coalition with whom to form.
Read more about Marine Le Pen and what she said about Ukraine here.
