2024 French election set to begin, with far-right parties expected to make major gains in parliament
Paris — Voters in France go to the polls Sunday for the first of two rounds of an election to select 577 members of the National Assembly, the lower house of parliament. The snap elections were called by President Emmanuel Macron on June 9 after his ruling Renaissance party performed poorly in elections for the European Parliament, which governs the 27-nation European Union.
The hastily called vote left France’s political parties with just 20 days to form alliances, scramble for support and convince people to vote for their candidates.
Why are there 2 rounds in the French election?
France’s two-round majority system was adopted in a 1962 referendum and introduced for the first time for presidential elections in 1965.
Macron’s call for elections in France unexpected, risky
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The highest-scoring candidates in the first round go forward to the second round. Voters can choose only one candidate. The argument was that the second round gives voters another chance to vote for their preferred party, even if their preferred candidate is eliminated in the first round.
Ukraine, for instance.
Douglas Webber, Professor Emeritus of Political Science at the INSEAD business school in Paris, believes Europe has cause for concern over the French election, saying a cohabitation would mean “uncertain prospects or probably very negative consequences for France’s role and for its engagement in the EU.”
Speaking to journalists from the Anglo-American Press Association in Paris, Webber said that uncertainty could linger until the next presidential elections in 2027, when far-right leader Le Pen has set her sights firmly on the winning the presidency.
Webber noted that Le Pen had already indicated her “aim to transform the EU and, in effect, to roll back its powers, as well as, amongst other things, to withdraw France from NATO.”
That, he warned, would be “a fairly good outcome for Vladimir Putin, and not a very encouraging one for the future and fate of Ukraine.”
Far-right parties make gains in EU Parliament elections
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For the past few decades, France and Germany have led European policymaking in an effective partnership. As Germany has been more embroiled in domestic matters in recent years, France has taken on more of those international affairs functions alone. Macron sees his country’s role in international politics as fundamental, and he’s been keen to speak as the leading EU voice on Ukraine, for instance.
Douglas Webber, Professor Emeritus of Political Science at the INSEAD business school in Paris, believes Europe has cause for concern over the French election, saying a cohabitation would mean “uncertain prospects or probably very negative consequences for France’s role and for its engagement in the EU.”
Speaking to journalists from the Anglo-American Press Association in Paris, Webber said that uncertainty could linger until the next presidential elections in 2027, when far-right leader Le Pen has set her sights firmly on the winning the presidency.
Webber noted that Le Pen had already indicated her “aim to transform the EU and, in effect, to roll back its powers, as well as, amongst other things, to withdraw France from NATO.”
That, he warned, would be “a fairly good outcome for Vladimir Putin, and not a very encouraging one for the future and fate of Ukraine.”
Elaine Cobbe
Source: cbsnews.com