Your result first round of French parliamentary elections and the historic leadership of the far right dominates the reports in the German press, which analyze what yesterday’s events in France signal.
The historic lead of Marine Le Pen and Jordan Bardela’s National Rally in the first round of the parliamentary elections, even as the decisive second round approaches on July 7, has already caused a political earthquake in the post-war French Gallic Fifth Republic. With the New Left Popular Front, the Socialists and the Greens in second place, and President Emmanuel Macron’s centrist party in third place.
“The Unbridled Advance of the Nationalists” is the title of the newspaper’s analysis TAZ. “The far right continues its rapid advance with a percentage higher than in the European elections (…) This demonstrates the rapid collapse of the liberal parties, which were previously represented in Macron’s government coalition. In response to the advance of the extreme right, left-wing opposition parties came together to form a new electoral front and thus gained ground. But their percentages are just a trend and do not allow for real change, because in most constituencies there will be second rounds with two or three candidates. The rise of the far right can be confirmed.”
The first far-right government after the Vichy regime?
In its commentary, the German Publishers Network RND claims that Macron’s stakes “were high and, above all, he played wrong. He failed to realize that many French people do not consider the composition of Parliament to be problematic, but rather reject Macron as their president. The reasons are many, not always fair and sometimes related to the French political system itself, which gives great power to the president.”
“However, precisely because Parliament was not the problem, changing its composition cannot provide the solution. The situation seems confused and we cannot expect a clear result within a week; on the contrary, we should be afraid. If the National Rally obtains an absolute majority, it will be the first far-right government in France since the Vichy regime. Notably, the Vichy regime was the pro-German government that collaborated with the Nazis during the Second World War.
Macron, Parliament and 2027
In its analysis of the result of the first round of parliamentary elections in France, the South German Newspaper states that if no political force reaches an absolute majority, Parliament will be blocked. “This would represent a new challenge for France: the country does not have the culture of coalition governments, which would be necessary to form post-electoral alliances. There have also never been independent technocrats in France. And Macron cannot dissolve Parliament again next year”, notes SZ.
The Munich newspaper then asks the question: “A year of deadlock in Parliament? Many commentators estimate that this period could last even longer. The president said three weeks ago that he would not resign before the end of his term in May 2027. But political pressure could soon increase and force him to do so. On Sunday afternoon, thousands of citizens took to the streets in many cities to demonstrate against the electoral result and the high profile of the extreme right.”
From Lionel Jospin to Jordan Bardela
Zeit, in its extensive analysis of the election results, attempts to compare the Chirac-Zospin cohabitation in 1997 with the possible rise of the far-right Jordan Bardela, Marine Le Pen’s chosen prime minister, with President Emmanuel Macron: “History shows it this way. A Bardella as prime minister can change a lot. When the socialist Lionel Jospin became prime minister with the conservative Jacques Chirac as president, he managed to get rid of the 35-hour week. A left-wing plan, then, against the conservative head of state. The experiences of the municipalities where the far-right governs show that when power is concentrated in their hands, it is increased rather than reduced. “We will not recognize a country under Le Pen,” predicts an opposition figure from Freys, in the south of France, where power was held for ten years by David Raslin, a friend of Le Pen. The success of the Popular Front, then, is what will determine what France will be like after next Sunday.”
Source: Deutsche Welle