‘If they win I will be very afraid’: Far right poised for major breakthrough as France votes again
It is a little before noon and there is a steady stream of people making their way into the town hall of the 9th arrondissement of Paris to vote in what may be the most consequential election in recent French history.
The far right, anti-immigration National Rally (RN), led by Marine Le Pen, is set to become the largest party in the French parliament, in what will likely be a crushing blow for French president Emmanuel Macron’s centrist alliance.
Opinion polls in recent days indicate the far right will win most seats in the next National Assembly but will fall some way short of the 289 needed for a majority.
The New Popular Front, a temporary leftwing coalition stretching from Jean-Luc Mélenchon’s radical France Unbowed party across to the centre left, is predicted to come second. Mr Macron’s centrist camp, which currently makes up a minority government, is likely to finish third and lose about half of its seats.
The first of two rounds of voting seven days ago saw the National Rally, or Rassemblement National, win about a third of votes, putting it within distance of an overall majority.
[ France election: Voter turnout high as far right bids for power amid threat of deadlock ]
However, the New Popular Front and Mr Macron’s alliance pulled more than 200 of their candidates from run-off contests that will decide who wins most of the 577 single-seat constituencies, in the second round of voting on Sunday. The strategy was aimed at avoiding centre and leftwing candidates splitting the vote by both standing in individual constituencies in the second round, allowing the far right to win the seat in the three-horse race.
Violette Dumoulin (21) a business student voting in Paris on Sunday, said the rise of the far right was a “catastrophe” for the country. “I’m not a big fan of Macron and I’m not a big fan of Jean-Luc Mélenchon, but I think as French people we have to do all possible in order to avoid Rassemblement National to be at the head of the government,” she said.
Posters calling for voters to back the left-wing Popular Front and warning of the threat posed by the far right have been plastered on walls across Paris, where voters traditionally lean more liberal than the rural strongholds of the National Rally.
Violette Dumoulin (21), a business student voting in Paris on Sunday. Photograph: Jack Power
Mamadou Fofana (28), who grew up in Paris and works in the financial sector, said he could not imagine Ms Le Pen’s party in power. A National Rally-led government would be a disaster for the economy, he said. “It would be very, very sad if they reached a majority in the National Assembly,” he said. “I think I am going to vote for Macron, because for me there is no way we can pick another side,” he said.
One woman, who did not wish to be named as she worked in a government department, said it was a sad day for France. The fact the National Rally had a chance of winning a majority, even if it was likely to fall short, was incredibly concerning, she said. “It is not a normal party ... If they win I will be very afraid,” she said.
Another man, who did not want to disclose who he voted for, said he welcomed the elections as a chance to “refresh” French politics.
Mamadou Fofana (28) voting in Paris on Sunday. Photograph: Jack Power
French people were disappointed by Mr Macron’s record, according to Marine Jouan (29), voting in a town hall in the 1st arrondissement across from the Louvre Museum. Mainstream political parties needed to do more to understand why working class voters were supporting the far right, she said.
Ms Jouan, who works for a pharmaceutical company, said she was unhappy with the state of the healthcare and education system. “In the end I think I will support the left, but I’m not 100 per cent confident ... I don’t feel recognised by any party,” she said.
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