It could be a historic election in France today. President Macron could lose his majority. The left stands together for the first time in 25 years. And an 18-year-old can be elected. The polling stations opened at 8, for the first round of parliamentary elections. The second round is on Sunday 19 June. Only 46 percent of French people intend to vote. 72 percent took the trip when they elected Macron as president in April. The leader of the far-right party National Assembly, Marine Le Pen, casts her vote in her electoral bastion Hénin-Beaumont. Photo: DENIS CHARLET / AFP – There are many indications that this is a country in political crisis According to France expert Franck Orban, there are two things to keep in mind in this election: Franck Orban is an associate professor at Østfold University College, where he researches on French and European politics. He is French himself, and is the host of the podcast “France Explained”. Photo: Philippe Bédos Ulvin / news – First, we can confirm that French politics is divided into three wings: a radical wing on the left, a radical wing on the right, and a center-moderate wing. This is how the seats in the National Assembly can be distributed after the election this year: And this is what it looked like in 2017: – Secondly, it will be decided whether Macron will have five years with free rein to carry out his policy, or whether he will be limited by a strong opposition, says Orban. He believes that the low turnout and the lack of commitment from the young people says a lot about the political situation in France. – There are many indications that this is a country in political crisis, when three quarters of young people say they do not intend to vote. They do not feel represented, and think that they want a worse life than their parents. It is a democratic problem, says Orban. Raphaelle Rosa (18) is the youngest candidate in the French parliamentary elections. Photo: JEAN-CHRISTOPHE VERHAEGEN / AFP Pugger for exams and campaigning On the right, the traditionally largest party, the Republicans (LR), has not done so well in recent years. Their presidential candidate, Valérie Pécresse, received only 4.78 percent of the vote this year. They face strong competition from Marine Le Pen’s far-right “National Assembly” (RN). So the Republicans need to think new. Maybe that’s why they are running with the youngest candidate for the election. Raphaelle is campaigning in the 8th constituency of Moselle in France. Rosa tells Le Figaro that she divides her time “90 percent election campaign, 10 percent pugging.” Photo: JEAN-CHRISTOPHE VERHAEGEN / AFP 18-year-old Raphaelle Rosa is campaigning from the family home in Yutz, northeast of France. At the same time she is pushing for artium. Orban believes this reflects the marked changes in French politics: – The fact that the Republicans are fielding an 18-year-old may be due to the fact that they simply did not find anyone else. There are 2000 fewer candidates in this parliamentary election than last time. This is how the French parliamentary election works Photo: STEPHANE DE SAKUTIN / AFP Elections to the National Assembly take place every five years by direct election in individual constituencies, in two rounds. If a candidate obtains an absolute majority in the first instance, he or she is elected. In order to participate in the second round of elections, a candidate must obtain a number of votes corresponding to at least 12.5% of those entitled to vote. If only one person reaches this level, the person who received the second largest number of votes will also participate in the second round of elections. In the second round, the one who gets the most votes wins. Source: The French National Assembly / Wikipedia Earthquake on the left To the left, the Socialist Party has long been described as dead. Their presidential candidate, Anne Hidalgo, received only 1.75 percent of the vote. Now they have come under the wing of the left-wing radical Jean-Luc Mélenchon’s election alliance Nupes (Nouvelle Union Populaire Écologiste et Sociale). A woman walks past an election campaign poster for the left-wing alliance Nupes that reads: “Mélenchon prime minister”. Photo: Bob Edme / AP It also has the Communist Party, the Green Party, and all the other major parties on the left. Mélenchon thus succeeded where no one had succeeded in 25 years, and even aims for the post of prime minister. Franck Orban thinks it’s a good idea. – Due to the way French politics works, with a two-round system, the left will not get a majority, and Mélenchon will not become prime minister. But by playing on it, he has captured second place in French politics from Marine Le Pen, and mobilized voters to bring out a strong opposition on the left, the researcher analyzes. President Emmanuel Macron stands with his wife Brigitte outside the polling stations in the resort town of Le Touquet in northern France. Photo: LUDOVIC MARIN / AFP Macron could lose majority Center-oriented Emmanuel Macron could also become the first president to lose a majority in the National Assembly after the presidential and parliamentary elections were synchronized in 2002. In 2017, the governing parties, of which Macron’s LREM, gained a clear majority. The latest forecast gives them 288 seats – one away from the majority. The run-up to the parliamentary elections has been marked by scandals and a until recently absent Macron. For Orban, it is unclear what Macron will do after the parliamentary elections. – When it comes to politics, you know quite a bit. The only thing Macron has talked about is raising the retirement age to 65 years. There is great opposition to it, explains Orban, who himself has already been and voted.
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Left-wing populist can make the majority miss Macron during parliamentary elections – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
