Left-wing parties poised to dominate French parliament after snap elections

French voters returned to the polls to elect the remaining members of the Assemblée Nationale, with 76 seats already filled in the first round on June 30 and 501 seats still to be decided. In the run-off votes, the candidate with the highest number of votes is elected, even if their score is below 50%.

Exit polls project the left-wing National Popular Front (NFP) will be the biggest party in parliament, while the far-right National Rally (RN), which led in the first round, is expected to fall to third place.

Prime Minister Gabriel Attal has announced that he will offer his resignation to President Emmanuel Macron following the results.

These snap legislative elections were called by President Macron after his centrist alliance suffered a heavy defeat in the European Parliament elections. Voter turnout was notably high, with the interior ministry reporting that almost 60% of eligible voters had cast their ballots by 5pm (15:00 GMT), potentially marking the highest turnout in more than four decades.

Left-wing and centrist forces have mobilized in an effort to defeat the far-right RN, which dominated the first round by winning about a third of the vote. (ILKHA)