French President Macron calls snap election in wake of huge far-Right gains in European vote
- This story is developing, more to come
French president Emmanuel Macron has called early elections in the wake of a massive shift to the right in the country’s elections European Union elections.
Macron suffered a major defeat tonight Marine le Pen‘s National Rally party was expected to win 31.5% of the vote after the European Union elections.
His Renaissance Party, meanwhile, suffered one of the worst defeats ever for a party in the French government, with just 15.2% of the vote. France‘s voice.
Macron dissolved the French parliament and called elections in the wake of the major defeat, announcing that the first round will take place on June 30, while the second will take place on July 7.
He said after his announcement: ‘France needs a clear majority in serenity and harmony. To be French is about choosing to make history, and not being driven by it.”
French President Emmanuel Macron (photo) has called early elections after the huge shift to the right during the European Union elections.
Supporters of France’s far-right National Rally react at party election headquarters after French President Emanuel Macron announced he would dissolve the National Assembly
One woman was seen happily drinking as Macron called early elections
Supporters of the far-right National Rally party happily celebrated the dissolution of the French parliament, buoyed by their success in the EU elections.
The EU elections, held across the continent over the past three days, are the first since Brexit, the pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
In addition, many voters are affected by the cost of living, concerned about migration and the costs of the green transition and alarmed by geopolitical tensions, including the war in Ukraine, and hardline and far-right parties have taken advantage of this. and offered the electorate an alternative.
It is not only French citizens who have been provoked by the extreme right tonight.
In Germany, Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s Social Democratic Party (SDU) was expected to come in third place, with just 14% of the vote, a historic low for the party according to German broadcasters who commissioned exit polls.
In the meantime, far-right parties in Germany are expected to take the lead.
A conservative alliance of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and the Christian Social Union (CSU) obtained 29.5% of the votes.
The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) came second, with 16.5% of the vote – a huge increase of 5.5% compared to the 2019 EU elections.
A similar result was observed in the Austrian exit polls, with the far-right FPOe party leading the vote count.
If confirmed, it would be the first time the group has topped national elections in the Alpine country.
The Freedom Party (FPOe) won 27 percent of the vote, ahead of the ruling conservative People’s Party (OeVP), according to polls released by the country’s main media outlets.
More to follow.
