France is heading towards a hung parliament following the recent parliamentary elections, with the leftist New Popular Front coalition taking the lead but failing to secure an absolute majority. The coalition won the largest number of seats but did not reach the 289-seat threshold required for a majority in the House of Representatives. This outcome represents a significant setback for the far-right National Rally party, which had anticipated a victory.
The National Rally party, led by Marine Le Pen, finished in third place behind President Emmanuel Macron's 'Together' bloc. This result implies that none of the three main blocs will be able to form a majority government independently and will need to seek alliances to pass legislation. France is not accustomed to building coalitions post-elections, a practice more common in parliamentary democracies in northern Europe.
Moderate left-wing politician Raphael Glucksmann has urged the political class to act responsibly, while Jean-Luc Mélenchon, leader of the leftist France Proud party, has dismissed the idea of forming a broad coalition. Mélenchon has called on Macron to invite the leftist coalition to govern. Macron's party leader, Stephane Segorn, expressed openness to working with major parties but ruled out any agreement with Mélenchon's party. Former Prime Minister Edouard Philippe also ruled out any agreement with the far-left party.
If an agreement is not reached, France will enter uncharted territory, as the constitution prevents Macron from calling new parliamentary elections for another 12 months. Prime Minister Gabriel Attal has indicated his intention to resign but is prepared to continue running the government. Macron may attempt to form a centre-left coalition by alienating Socialists and Greens from the left-wing coalition, but there are no signs of an imminent disintegration of the New Popular Front.
Another possible outcome is the formation of a technocratic government to manage day-to-day affairs without overseeing structural changes, which would still require parliamentary support. The recent elections saw a record voter turnout of 59.71 percent, the highest since the 1981 parliamentary election.
In constituencies abroad, the presidential majority 'Together' maintained dominance, with significant victories in various districts. For instance, Roland Lescure won in the first district, which includes French citizens in the United States and Canada. Similar outcomes were observed in other districts across North America, Central America, South America, and the Caribbean.
- In the first district, Roland Lescure, the Minister responsible for Industry, secured 54.25% of the votes against Osama Laraichi of the New Popular Front, who garnered 45.75%.
- In the second district, Éléonore Caroit of the presidential majority won with 53.27% of the votes against Franco-Chilean ecologist Sergio Coronado, who received 46.73%.
- Vincent Caure of the presidential camp narrowly won in the third district with 50.5% of the votes against Charlotte Minvielle of the New Popular Front, who secured 49.5%.
- In the fourth district, Pieyre-Alexandre Anglade of 'Together' won with 50.2% of the votes against Cécilia Gondard of the New Popular Front, who received 49.76%.
- Stéphane Vojetta, a Divers center candidate, won in the fifth district with 61.5% of the votes against Maxime Da Silva of the New Popular Front, who secured 38.5%.
- Marc Ferracci of 'Together' was re-elected in the sixth district with 59.5% of the votes against Halima Delimi of the New Popular Front, who received 40.5%.
- Frédéric Petit of 'Together' won in the seventh district with 58.2% of the votes against Asma Rharmaoui-Claquin of the New Popular Front, who secured 41.8%.
- Caroline Yadan of the Republicans won in the eighth district with 52.7% of the votes against Meyer Habib of the presidential bloc, who received 47.3%.
- Karim Ben Cheïkh of the New Popular Front won in the ninth district with 74.7% of the votes against Samira Djouadi of the presidential bloc, who received 25.3%.
- Amélia Lakrafi of the presidential bloc won in the tenth district with 53.2% of the votes against Elsa Di Meo of the New Popular Front, who secured 46.8%.
- Anne Genetet of the presidential bloc won in the eleventh district with 57% of the votes against Franck Pajot of the New Popular Front, who received 43%.
