French President Emmanuel Macron speaks during a meeting with members of the AI sector at the Elysee Presidential Palace in Paris, France, on May 21, 2024.
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French President Emmanuel Macron said on Sunday he would dissolve the country’s parliament and call for a new parliamentary vote across the country, following a heavy defeat in EU elections.
The shock announcement followed Leave polls A release from public broadcaster France TV shows that Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally (Rassemblement National, or RN) will win around 31.5% of the vote, compared to 15.2% for Macron’s Renaissance party.
“At the end of this day, I will not be able to pretend that nothing happened,” Macron said in a TV address, according to a CNBC translation.
The first round of parliamentary elections will take place on June 30 and the second round on July 7, Macron said.
After calling on Macron to call elections, Le Pen welcomed the news, saying on X: “We are ready.”
Calling parliamentary elections is a risky move for Macron, who may no longer have control over France’s domestic issues if Le Pen’s RN wins a parliamentary majority. Macron’s presidency does not end until 2027 and he cannot run for a third term.
“By unexpectedly bringing things to a head in new parliamentary elections, Macron may hope to revive his party’s fortunes,” Holger Schmieding, chief economist at Berenberg Bank, said in a note on Sunday evening. “However, barring a major turnaround in sentiment, his party appears set to lose heavily in the parliamentary elections.”
He added that new elections for a “France with budget problems” would create uncertainty, which could cause some concern for markets.
Bardella in the spotlight
RN is led in Europe by Jordan Bardella, 28, who has made it his mission to make the far right acceptable to France’s youth and beyond. In a Ipsos survey published in May32% of respondents said they would be satisfied if Bardella became president in 2027 (above Le Pen, who came second with 31%).
The nationalist and populist party’s campaign promises include “restoring” order in France, closing “radical” mosques and stopping what it calls “migrant immersion.” It also promised to cut VAT on utility bills, invest in nuclear power and lower the retirement age to 60, “for those who start working early.”
Jordan Bardella, president of the National Rally (RN), a French nationalist and right-wing populist party, arrives at his final meeting ahead of the upcoming European Parliament elections.
Nurfoto | Nurfoto | Getty Images
Historic promises to leave the EU and leave the EU euros were dropped some time ago by Le Pen because she wanted to appeal to a broader spectrum of voters.
“Whether today’s French result and the likely win in the early parliamentary elections can put Le Pen on course to ultimately become president is a completely different matter,” said Schmieding van Berenberg.
“It is easy for her to rail against a second-term president who has lost popularity. But that is not the same as winning a presidential election (due to take place in 2027) against a new candidate. Much will depend on whether France’s centrist parties can field an attractive candidate against her.”
Polling stations closed on Sunday after the last and largest day of voting in elections for members of the European Parliament, with populist, far-right parties gaining record support, according to early data.
The center-right European People’s Party (EPP) is expected to win the most seats in parliament again, with slightly more seats than before. The far-right group Identity and Democracy, of which RN is a part, has made major gains.
– CNBC’s Charlotte Reed contributed to this report.
