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France’s tense election campaign was suspended on Saturday, a day before the final vote, but concerns about the country’s future persisted before voting began.
The traditional day of reflection ahead of Sunday’s runoff will do little to allay fears that France – a major global power and pillar of the European Union – could be mired in deadlock and stagnation.
Final opinion polls on Friday showed Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally (RN) party was unlikely to secure an outright majority in the National Assembly.
President Emmanuel Macron’s strategy of calling early elections to force a choice between a centrist course and extreme lines of the far left and far right has not been successful.
As a result, he will not be able to secure a clear governing majority for the remaining three years of his presidency, and Prime Minister Gabriel Attal will likely run a caretaker government.
Pollsters Ipsos and Ifop said the anti-immigration, Eurosceptic RN could win The National Assembly has a range of between 170 and 210 seats, well below the 289 needed for an absolute majority.
The poll, conducted by Ipsos Talan for Le Monde, Radio France and France Television, predicted that the National Front would have a slight advantage over the left-wing New Popular Front, which could win between 145 and 175 seats.
Both far-right and left-wing groups are expected to outpace Macron’s centrist allies, who are expected to win The number of seats ranges from 118 to 148, down from 250 in the previous parliament.
That means French voters may go to bed Sunday night unsure who will form and lead a government, or whether Attal will continue to play a weak role.
Le Pen remains confident of an outright majority, which would force Macron to appoint his 28-year-old deputy, Jordan Bardella, as prime minister.
“Whether it is RN victory “If there is an absolute majority, I can start working on reconstruction projects from Sunday… otherwise the country will be locked down,” Badla said on Thursday.
Attal has pledged to remain as caretaker president “as long as necessary” while Macron’s office explores options to maintain some form of government.
Macron will remain in office until presidential and legislative elections in April 2027, but he now faces the challenge of potentially sharing power with political rivals.
The prospect of France forming its first far-right government since World War II has worried its European allies, who are also puzzled by Macron’s risky decision to hold early elections.
Even if the Nationalists fail as expected, France will still face unknown political difficulties in its preparations for hosting the Olympics. game.
To counter the rise of the far right that emerged in the first round of voting on June 30, centrist and left-wing parties formed a second-round alliance.
Le Pen denounced the alliances as an attempt to “steal victory” be opposed to She hoped to implement the will of the people by creating what she called a “single party” to protect the political elite.
However, it is uncertain how many voters will come out on Sunday to support the candidates who advance as a result of the agreements.
With the outcome so uncertain, tensions are running high. More than 50 candidates and campaigners have been physically attacked in just four weeks of campaigning.
To prevent any trouble, about 30,000 police officers will be deployed this weekend.
French stocks held steady on Friday as investors expected the far-right to remain win However, analysts predict unrest if the Nationalist Party tries to implement its expensive economic plans, including overturning Macron’s pension reforms.
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