French parties are in a race against a deadline to block the far-right from taking power in the country’s parliament. Candidates for the French National Assembly have until 6 pm on Tuesday to register for the second round of high stakes snap legislative elections, or withdraw. The centrist party of French President Emmanuel Macron and a united left-wing coalition are working to prevent the far-right National Rally from gaining control of the government, following their success in the first round of voting. The results of the first round brought the National Rally party closer to power than ever before, but there is still a chance that voters may block their path in the upcoming second round.
More than 150 left-wing or Macronist candidates who qualified for the second round of voting have already withdrawn in order to prevent the far right from winning a majority. Marine Le Pen, a former French presidential candidate and prominent member of the National Rally, is urging voters to give her party an absolute majority in the second round. The far-right researcher and Stanford University professor, Cécile Alduy, pointed out that despite Jordan Bardella’s lack of experience and competence, voters may still support him due to their dissatisfaction with Macron and the current political system. Bardella, at just 28 years old, played a significant role in making the National Rally the largest political force in France and could potentially become the country’s youngest prime minister.
Following the success of the National Rally in the first round of snap legislative elections, the party is now striving to secure an absolute majority in the decisive second round on July 7. If successful, the anti-immigration and nationalist party will take control of the government with Bardella at the helm. The snap elections were called by President Macron after the French far-right’s strong performance in the European elections in June. The outcome of these elections will determine the future of France’s democracy and whether the far-right will form the country’s first government since World War II. French parties are making strategic moves to block the far-right from gaining power and preserve the values of democracy in the country.
