Early legislative elections in France: RN leads polls, but Macron’s bloc struggles to keep up

The first round of legislative elections, called early by President Emmanuel Macron, began on Sunday in polling stations. More than 49.5 million citizens are called to the polls to elect their 577 deputies of the National Assembly. The second round will take place next Sunday, July 7.

The far-right National Rally (RN) leads polls with a voting intention of 36%, even more than the 31.4% obtained in the European elections on June 9. The New Popular Front (NFP), which represents the left, has an average of 28.2% in the polls, while the Macronist bloc is further behind, with an average of 20.3%, a sharp drop compared to the elections two years ago. The polls even point to the possibility of the RN obtaining an absolute majority in the second round.

Voters will elect 539 deputies from metropolitan France, 27 from overseas territories in the Pacific, Indian Ocean and Caribbean, as well as 11 representing French people living abroad. The result of the first round will provide a general picture of voter opinion, but not necessarily of the overall composition of the National Assembly. It is extremely difficult to make predictions because of the complicated voting system and because parties will work between rounds to form alliances in some constituencies or to exit others. With information from EFE and Associated Press.