French president Emmanual Macron’s allies are divided as they attempt to prevent a landslide victory by the far right. Gabriel Attal, the prime minister under Mr Macron’s centrist coalition, urged party candidates to drop out of races where they were in third place behind left-wing alliance the New Popular Front (NFP) and Marine Le Pen’s National Rally (RN).
Meanwhile, finance minister Bruno Le Maire ruled out asking voters to choose a far-left candidate from the France Unbowed (LFI) party – a member of the NFP coalition. Mr Macron has found himself caught in the crossfire as he proposed that voters rally behind a “broad alliance” of republican and democratic candidates for the second round in order to prevent a far-right victory.
The mixed signals from Mr Macron’s allies come as they attempt to stave off a resurgence of the far right, which made historic gains in the first round of France’s parliamentary election. RN and its allies won 33 per cent of the vote, followed by a left-wing bloc with 28 per cent and Mr Macron’s centrists with just 20 per cent. This was a huge setback for Mr Macron, who called the snap election after his party suffered a crushing defeat by Ms Le Pen’s party in the European parliament elections last month.
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Ruthless Medvedev knocks out ailing top seed Sinner
Rule out Daniil Medvedev at your peril.
Van Dijk can prove legends wrong by getting into final
Of all the players around Europe to chastise, to suggest hasn’t had a positive impact on teammates and to berate for not playing well enough, Virgil van Dijk will feel like a baffling choice to regular viewers of the Premier League.
Southgate: This is England's chance to make history
Three Lions have full squad available for Netherlands match
Yamal's wonder goal leads favourites Spain into final
If this is to be Spain’s first men’s trophy since the glory era of 2008-12, there couldn’t be a better signal of a new era than the youngest player in the history of the European Championships scoring the goal to set them on their way to the final.
Thames Water may go bust, what does this mean for us?
Pity the poor Thames Water consumer (for the record, I am one). We found out yesterday that the water company only has enough cash to last until next May – thanks to a debt pile of more than £15bn.
Dyson to slash 1,000 jobs
Dyson is axeing up to 1,000 jobs in the UK as part of a costcutting drive. The move by the vacuum cleaner maker, which relocated its headquarters to Singapore in 2019, will see its British-based workforce reduced by more than a quarter.
Senior Democrat publicly urges Biden to step aside
Adam Smith is sixth House representative to call for change
Indian recruits in Russian army can quit, says Putin
Citizens were reportedly misled’ into serving in Ukraine
'A room covered in blood'
A mother and daughter caught up in the Russian missile strike on a Kyiv children’s hospital speak to Tom Watling
Sugar consumption down one year after tax applied
The sugar tax imposed on soft drinks in Britain led to a significant drop in sugar in people’s diets, according to a longterm study.
