French President Emmanuel Macron lost control of the National Assembly in legislative elections on Sunday, a major setback that could plunge the country into political paralysis unless he can negotiate alliances with other parties.
The centrist coalition ensemble of Macron, who wants to increase the retirement age and further deepen the integration of the European Union (EU), would end up with the most seats in Sunday’s election. But it was short of the absolute majority needed to control parliament, according to initial projections and early results.
Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire called the result a “democratic coup” and added that if other blocs don’t cooperate, “this would block our ability to reform and protect the French.”
Now there is no set script in France for how things will play out. The last time a newly elected president failed to win an outright majority in parliamentary elections was in 1988.
A fluctuating parliament will require a degree of power sharing and compromise between parties without much experience in France in recent decades. Macron could eventually call early elections if there is a legislative deadlock.
“The defeat of the presidential party is complete and there is no clear majority in sight,” veteran leftist Jean-Luc Mélenchon told supporters.
the left block Nupes led by Mélenchon came in second place, according to initial projections. United behind him, the left-wing parties were on track to triple their figure from the last legislative elections in 2017.
Photo: Reuters
Macron, 44, became the first French president in two decades to win a second term in April after voters mobilized to keep the far right out of power.
The capacity of Macron to seek further reform of the euro zone’s second-largest economy would depend on his ability to rally moderates outside his alliance to the right and left behind his legislative agenda.
Macron and his allies must now decide whether to pursue an alliance with the conservative party. The Republicanswhich came in fourth place, or lead a minority government that will have to negotiate laws with other parties on a case-by-case basis.
“There are moderates in the benches, from the right, from the left. There are moderate socialists and there are people from the right who, perhaps, in legislation, will be on our side,” government spokeswoman Olivia Gregoire said.
Separate forecasts from the pollster Ifop, OpinionWay, Elabe and Ipsos showed Macron’s Ensemble alliance winning between 210 and 240 seats and Nupes securing between 141 and 188. The Republicans between 60 and 75 seats.
In another major shift for French politics, far-right leader Marine Le Pen’s National Rally party could increase the number of parliamentarians tenfold with up to 90-95 seats, initial projections showed. That would be the largest representation of the party in the assembly.
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