French President Emmanuel Macron has lost an absolute majority in the National Assembly in legislative elections on Sunday.
Provisional results showed that Macron’s Ensemble (ENS) alliance won 245 of the 577 seats in the National Assembly, the Ministry of the Interior announced early on Monday morning after vote counting ended.
An absolute majority would require 289 seats.
Socialist veteran Jean-Luc Melenchon’s new leftist NUPES coalition secured 131 seats, becoming the main opposition force.
The loss of control of the National Assembly is a major setback as it can throw the nation into political paralysis.
Now, Macron needs to get support from other parties and build a stable alliance. In the near-final results, a left-wing alliance has become the biggest opposition group.
The far-right has witnessed record-high wins while the conservatives seem to have become likely kingmakers.
The outcome of the elections was a “democratic shock”, said Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire. He added that if the other blocs do not cooperate, “this would block our capacity to reform and protect the French.”
Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne said, “The result is a risk for our country in view of the challenges we have to face.” From Monday, Macron’s camp will work to seek alliances, the leader added. If gridlock ensues, the president can also call a snap election. “The rout of the presidential party is complete and there is no clear majority in sight,” hard-left leader Jean-Luc Melenchon told supporters.
(With inputs from agencies)
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