After the second round of the legislative elections on Sunday, July 7, the left with the New Popular Front came out on top in the poll and won 182 seats, followed by the Macronist camp with 168 seats and the National Rally and its 143 seats. Analysis of the results and perspectives, with the RFI editorial staff and our guests.
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► International reactions to this historic election of July 7
In Africa, there was relief at the victory of the New Popular Front, which ousted the National Rally from an absolute majority.
The victory of the National Rally would have created something irremediable for “West Africa”. Relations between France and Africa will be preserved and perhaps strengthened later with a new team in government.
Special edition French legislative elections – sixth part [9h40-10h00]
Guests:
– Francis Kpatindé, journalist and teacher at Sciences Po Paris
– Alioune Tine, founder of the think tank Afrikajom center in Dakar
► The surprise of this legislative election is the result of a decision by the French people, who made the choice of democracyand that “ shows that when we make democracy live, we can defend it well “, says former Spanish Foreign Minister Arancha Gonzalez Laya.
The French have said two things: they do not want the National Rally, to the point where they have sometimes voted for political choices that were not their own. They have also asked politicians to find a compromise, a consensus, and that is the game of democracy.
Special edition French legislative elections – fifth part [9h15-9h30]
Guests:
– Arancha Gonzalez Laya, former Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs
– Roger Cohen, columnist at New York Times
► The New Popular Front’s score created a surprise on Sunday eveningboth for French voters and for the French left, faced with polls that predicted a victory for the extreme right, and a possible absolute majority for the National Rally. With this election, it is a beautiful expression of the voters who refused to have a government of the extreme right. It is the honour of the values of the Republic which is saved “, says Dieynaba Diop.
Today, there is a lot of anger and disappointment in the way things are conducted politically in our country. How can we avoid disappointing left-wing voters who called for unity and at the same time maintain the trust placed in us by those who joined the Republican Union and who blocked the far right? It is a subtle balance that we will have to find.
Special edition French legislative elections – fourth part [8h35-9h00]
Guests:
– Julien Odoul, MP for Yonne and spokesperson for the RN
– Martin Garagnon, spokesperson for the Together for the Republic campaign
– Dieynaba Diop, spokesperson for the Socialist Party
– Julien Aubert, vice-president of the Republicans party, president of Oser la France
► The National Assembly is therefore fragmented into three blocs in France.Despite a breakthrough by the Republican front, the vote remains in a certain way a victory for the extreme right, believes political scientist Safia Dahani.
It is worth noting a victory for the RN and the far right despite the enthusiasm on the left. The RN increases its number of deputies, with 143 seats, this is a historic score in France for the far right in Parliament during the Fifth Republic.
Special edition French legislative elections – third part [8h10-8h30]
Guests:
– Safia Dahani, political scientist, doctor of political science from Sciences Po Toulouse and post-doctoral fellow at the School for Advanced Studies in the Social Sciences (EHESS), specialist in the extreme right
– Tahar Ben Jelloun, writer
► After the announcement of the vote, Prime Minister Gabriel Attal announced that he would resign this Monday, July 8, even though he says he is ready to stay in office as long as duty requires, the time to find a coalition. How do the next few weeks look like while waiting to find a coalition agreement?
We must take the time to form a solid coalition since there is no absolute majority. The New Popular Front has a relative majority, so forming a new government will take time. During this waiting period, there are two main options: either maintaining the Attal government to deal with current affairs, or the option of a provisional technical government while this coalition is formed.
Special edition French legislative elections – second part [7h40-8h00]
Guests:
– Emilie Zapalski, founder of the political communications agency Emilie Conseil
– Arnaud Benedetti, editor-in-chief of the Political and Parliamentary Review
– Marie-Anne Cohendet, professor of constitutional law at the University of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne
► After a breakthrough by the National Rally in the first round, the New Popular Front came out on top in the vote, closely followed by the Macronists while the RN came third. The Republican Front has therefore succeeded in mobilizing voters in order to block the extreme right..
What is winning is the withdrawal strategy. The Republican front has nevertheless reformed to limit the progression of the National Rally, which was announced to be very strong in the hemicycle, which is not the case since it comes in third position.
Special edition French legislative elections – first part [7h10-7h30]
Guests:
– Emilie Zapalski, founder of the political communications agency Emilie Conseil
– Arnaud Benedetti, editor-in-chief of the Political and parliamentary review
– Stéphane Vernay, deputy editor-in-chief of West France
Read alsoFrench Legislative Elections: Gabriel Attal Announces Resignation After Saving His Camp From Debacle