Post-election deadlock will bring instability to France

For France's latest left-wing coalition, it was mission accomplished - stopping Marine Le Pen's far-right National Rally (RN) party from taking power in the second and final round of voting in this parliamentary election.

- CHRIS STEVENSON

To a lesser extent, the president, Emmanuel Macron, is also likely to say he was vindicated in calling a snap election in the wake of the large gains made by Le Pen’s party in European elections in June. Le Pen has been dealt a blow. An agreement between the leftist bloc, called the New Popular Front, and Macron’s centrist Together grouping meant that more than 200 candidates dropped out before the second round in an effort to prevent the vote against RN from being split.

It worked. Facing the prospect of the far-right party being the largest in parliament, which is what a strong RN showing in the first round had suggested, voters rejected Le Pen. The young leader of RN, Le Pen protégé Jordan Bardella, had been seen as a prime-minister-in-waiting, likely to be brought in alongside President Macron if RN took a grip on parliament.

That prospect now looks remote, with the left winning 182 seats in the 577-seat chamber, Macron’s centrist alliance 168, and Le Pen’s RN and allies 143, according to interior ministry data cited by newspaper Le Monde – although the final numbers will depend on which groupings some MPs join.