French President Emmanuel Macron has called a snap parliamentary election after the far right surged in the European election this weekend. The National Rally won more than double the votes of Macron’s centrist alliance.
“I cannot act as if nothing had happened,” Macron said, announcing his decision on Sunday night. The parliamentary election will take place on 30 June and 7 July, though Macron’s position as president is not at stake.
Elsewhere in the European elections, European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen said, “the centre is holding.” However, far-right parties made gains in Italy, Austria, and Germany as 360 million eligible voters chose 720 new Members of the European Parliament (MEPs).
As a reminder, President Emmanuel Macron has called elections for the French assembly, meaning a new prime minister will be elected. This morning, the vice-president of the far-right National Rally stated that the party’s 28-year-old leader, Jordan Bardella, would be its contender for prime minister if it won a majority.
“Jordan Bardella is our candidate for the prime minister’s office,” Sebastien Chenu confirmed to RTL radio.
We’ll have a profile on Bardella later this morning.