Lorpen of France Dropped to 3rd Place "Victory Just Delayed... Twice the Number of Lawmakers"

Marine Le Pen, the de facto leader of France's far-right party Rassemblement National (RN), stated on the 7th (local time) that "our victory has only been delayed" as the RN is expected to finish third behind the left-wing coalition and the pro-government bloc in the runoff of the legislative election.

[Image source=AFP Yonhap News]

According to AFP and other sources, Le Pen told French broadcaster TF1, "If it weren't for the unnatural alliance between President Emmanuel Macron and the far-left, RN would have absolutely secured a majority," adding, "The tide of the far-right will continue to rise." She also said, "We have doubled the number of our deputies, so there is no reason to be disappointed."

The far-right party RN had initially led the first round of voting on the 30th of last month, approaching the center of parliamentary power, but was pushed down to third place in the runoff. This outcome is attributed to the left-wing coalition Nouvelle Union Populaire ?cologique et Sociale (NUPES) and the pro-government bloc uniting many candidates to prevent a far-right government.

However, Le Pen said, "The current situation under Macron cannot be maintained," and questioned Jean-Luc M?lenchon, leader of La France Insoumise (LFI) within the first-place left-wing coalition, by asking, "Will M?lenchon become prime minister?"

No party secured an absolute majority in this election, leaving the prime minister appointment process uncertain. Notably, President Macron has expressed that he cannot entrust government operations to the far-left LFI party. On the other hand, immediately after exit polls showed the left-wing coalition NUPES in first place, M?lenchon declared, "The president has an obligation to ask NUPES to run the country," and raised his voice saying, "The left-wing coalition is ready to govern." He emphasized that they will implement the coalition's pledges as is, stating, "There will be no alliance or negotiation with Macron and others."

For RN, which was once a strong contender to produce the next prime minister, being pushed to the third-largest parliamentary group means it has effectively lost the opportunity to participate in government operations, which is inevitably disappointing. Jordan Bardella, RN leader and a leading candidate for prime minister, condemned the alliance between the left-wing coalition and the pro-government bloc as a "dishonorable alliance" immediately after the exit polls were released.