Emmanuel Macron Takes High Risk, Calls For National Election In France After Far-Right Party RN Wins EU Vote. French President Emmanuel Macron has called for snap national elections in France after the far-right Rassemblement National (RN) claimed victory in the European parliament. Macron’s Renaissance party won 15% of the votes, while the RN won 31.5%. As such, he dissolved the National Assembly on Sunday evening.
Macron said it was a serious, heavy decision but an act of trust in the people of France. The French president highlighted that he has confidence in the ability of the French people to make the fairest choice for themselves and future generations. He added that his only ambition is to be useful to the country. The legislative elections will be held on June 30 and July 7.
This comes after RN leader Jordan Bardella called on Macron to dissolve the French parliament. He highlighted the gap between the two parties as a ‘stinging disavowal’ for the president. Bardella said the unprecedented defeat for the current French government is the end of a cycle and the beginning of the post-Macron era.
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RN Wants To Rebuild France
Marine Le Pen, the parliamentary lead of RN who had lost to Macron in the French presidency elections in 2017 and 2022, welcomed the national election. Marine said they are ready to take power if the French place their trust in them.
Le Pen said RN is ready to rebuild the country and ready to defend the interests of the French. She added that they are ready to put an end to mass immigration, ready to make the purchasing power of the French a priority, and ready to begin the reindustrialization of the country.
Emmanuel Macron May Not Come Back to Power
It may also be that Macron won’t return to power. The far-right could win the French election amid the European immigration crisis, war in Gaza and Ukraine, and inflation. The election will happen during the Paris Olympics 2024.
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Macron’s abrupt decision reflects that he wasn’t ready for the RN to win. Earlier this year, he appointed Gabriel Attal as France’s new prime minister to boost his government. Moreover, in the 2017 election Macron had promised to unite the left and the right, turning France into a start-up nation. However, he has retained his party’s social-liberal trappings and taken a more right-wing and national-identitarian route. As such, the far-right has been welcomed with open arms into the mainstream.
