French voters elect parliamentarians, in test for Macron

Paris: French voters went to the polls Sunday in the final round of parliamentary elections that will demonstrate how much legroom President Emmanuel Macron’s party will be given to implement his ambitious domestic agenda.

Polls are being held nationwide to select the 577 members of the National Assembly, the most powerful branch of France’s Parliament. In last week’s first-round vote, a coalition led by hardleft firebrand Jean-Luc Melenchon made a surprisingly strong showing, sending jitters through Macron’s centrist and center-right allies.

They fear that a strong performance by Melenchon’s coalition on Sunday could turn Macron into a shackled second-term leader, one who spends his time bargaining with politicians and with limits on his ability to govern.

Following Macron’s reelection in May, his coalition has been campaigning to keep its straight majority — a share of over half the seats — to enable the president to implement tough promises, including tax cuts and raising France’s retirement age from 62 to 65. But these parliamentary elections have largely been defined by voter apathy — with over half the electorate staying home for the first round, and broadsides between candidates further turning people away.

In Sunday’s parliamentary runoff, turnout was 19% at midday, slightly higher than last week at the same time but still low for France. Though Macron’s alliance is projected to win the most seats, observers predict that it could fall short of maintaining a parliamentary majority — the golden number of 289 seats. I n this case, the new coalition composed of the hard left, the Socialists and the Greens could make Macron’s political maneuvering harder, since the lower house of parliament has the final say in passing laws.