French voters made history in the second round of the general election on July 7, dashing the hopes of Marine Le Pen’s far-right RN party and giving the New Popular Front (NFP) the most seats (182).
Following the left-wing coalition, President Emmanuel Macron’s centrist coalition (163 seats) won, while the far-right RN, which had been aiming to take power, fell to third place with 143 seats (effectively last among the frontrunners).
Thus, out of the 577 seats, the left and Macron’s centrist bloc won a combined total of 345 seats, more than the majority of 289. Other parties, including right-wing and far-left groups, won the remaining 89 seats.
The election result came as something of a surprise, as it was a major boost for the left not just in France but across Europe.
In the end, the RN came out on top in the first round of voting on June 30, far ahead of the NFP in second place, with President Macron’s party coming in third. In response to this result, far-right parties launched a large-scale election campaign, and the media predicted that the RN would win a majority or close to a majority in the second and final rounds of voting, resulting in a neo-fascist takeover of the French government.
The possibility immediately sparked debate among the NFP and centrists, who sought a tactical alliance between the two anti-far-right coalitions to stop Le Pen’s party from winning a majority.
As a result, on the eve of the second round of voting on Sunday (7 July), strategic withdrawals were made officially in more than 200 seats and unofficially in many others, resulting in the RN suffering a major defeat in the final vote.
