French General Election, Far-Right RN Leads with 33%... Macron's Broad Coalition Suffers Defeat

In France, the far-right party National Rally (RN), led by Marine Le Pen, won the first round of the early general election held on the 30th of last month (local time) with 33.1% of the vote.

According to major foreign media on the day, the French Ministry of the Interior announced the election results on the morning of the 1st.

Marine Le Pen [Image source=EPA Yonhap News]

The left-wing coalition New Popular Front (NFP) came in second with 28% of the vote. The ruling party Renaissance, led by President Emmanuel Macron, along with the broader pro-government coalition Ensemble, managed to secure only 20% of the vote. This is widely regarded as a significant defeat.

To be elected in the first round, a candidate must receive more than 25% of registered voters in the constituency and more than 50% of the total votes cast on the day.

The second round of voting for constituencies without a winner will be held on the 7th.

The turnout for this first round was 66.7%, surpassing the 47.5% turnout in the 2022 general election.