The first round of the French legislative elections saw the unprecedented rise of Marine Le Pen’s National Rally party with 33.5% of the vote. The left, grouped in the New Popular Front, would win 28%. And President Macron’s party, Together for the Republic, would be left with 21%. The traditional right-wing Republicans won 10% in an election marked by a high turnout. According to polling institutes, it surpassed the 60% mark, making it the highest percentage since 1981.
Now, it remains to be seen what will happen in the second round, which will take place next Sunday. The National Assembly has 577 deputies who are elected uninominal in each district. There will be a second round in almost all of the country, as only in 75 to 85 constituencies did the winning list win with an absolute majority.
According to the electoral law, the second round will go to those parties that pass the 12% threshold. Macron asked his candidates to withdraw where they came third, and left-wing MP Jean-Luc Mélenchon did the same.
According to an Ipsos poll for the state broadcaster, if the results are repeated on Sunday, the bloc of Macron and his allies would drop from the 250 seats they won in 2022 to between 70 and a hundred. The far right, which has 89 MPs, would win between 230 and 280 seats. At the top end of the spectrum, it would be very close to an absolute majority of 289
