High turnout in France ahead of first round of elections
According to surveys, there is an increase in voter turnout from roughly 48% to between 60-64%. The right-wing Rassemblement National (RN), which leads in the polls with 36%, is expecting protests after the results are announced. "If we win, there will be demonstrations in the streets, and the far-left extremists will be responsible for it," RN founder Marine Le Pen told France 2.
Paris Police Chief Laurent Nunez stated that security forces are prepared for possible demonstrations and disturbances.
Meanwhile, the conservative Republican Party continues to show signs of dissolution. Former deputy party chief Aurélien Pradie announced the founding of a new party, with 30 candidates running, among them ten who previously sat in the National Assembly for the Republicans. "The party is dead, it no longer reaches its voters," Pradie told the newspaper "La Dépêche."
The sister party of the CDU/CSU is effectively split, as former party chief Eric Ciotti has entered into an electoral alliance with the RN. The Ciotti faction has fielded approximately 60 candidates, but only one former Republican parliamentarian is among them.
The rest of the party leadership, which opposes the electoral alliance, has so far failed to expel Ciotti from his position and the party. The deadline for Ciotti to call a party leadership meeting to vote on his expulsion expires on Wednesday evening. Ciotti's camp, however, has already indicated that they plan to use legal means to prevent this. Both factions currently see themselves as the true representatives of the Republicans and are using their logo.
In the first TV debate between Prime Minister Gabriel Attal, RN leader Jordan Bardella, and left-populist Manuel Bompard, the candidates disagreed on the withdrawal of the controversial pension reform, among other things. Bardella was criticized for his plan to discriminate against French citizens with dual nationality. "There are 3.5 million French people who feel stigmatized by your proposal," Attal said. "Your message is that French people with dual nationality are not real French people and therefore not trustworthy," Attal added.
Bardella acknowledged that he only wanted to protect sensitive posts against "possible foreign interference." "Do you perhaps want a Franco-Russian as the head of an atomic power plant?" the RN leader asked.
According to the latest polls, the RN is at around 36%, followed by the far-left New Popular Front with 28.5%. Macron's camp is significantly behind at 21%. Macron, who is elected until 2027, has ruled out a resignation.
Macron, who was surprised by his party's loss in the European elections on June 9, unexpectedly called for advanced parliamentary elections on June 30 and July 7. This move has also drawn criticism from within his own ranks. Many of his former allies accuse him of unwittingly paving the way for the right-wing populists.
- Laurent Nuñez, Paris Police Chief, has confirmed that security forces are ready for potential demonstrations, following the election round.
- Contrary to the right-wing Rassemblement National's (RN) expectations, voter turnout has increased significantly from roughly 48% to between 60-64%.
- In the Parliamentary election, RN is leading with 36%, while the conservative Republican Party continues to show signs of dissolution.
- Former deputy party chief Aurelien Pradie has announced the founding of a new party, with 30 candidates running, and 10 who previously sat in the National Assembly for the Republicans.
- Eric Ciotti, former party chief of the sister party of CDU/CSU, has entered into an electoral alliance with the RN, fielding approximately 60 candidates, but only one former Republican parliamentarian is among them.
- During the first TV debate, RN leader Jordan Bardella faced criticism for his plan to discriminate against French citizens with dual nationality, and Bardella responded by claiming he only wants to protect sensitive posts against "possible foreign interference."
- Gabriel Attal, Prime Minister, accused Bardella of stigmatizing French people with dual nationality and questioned his proposal, stating it implies that they are not real French people and therefore not trustworthy.
