Shops boarded up amid fears of left-wing riots after French election

Cities across France are once again set to burn, as militant activists take to the streets to violently protest the results of the first round of the snap election, which saw the far-right National Rally party soar ahead in the polls. 

Marine Le Pen‘s far-right National Rally (RN) won the first round of legislative elections on Sunday, leaving incumbent president Emmanuel Macron‘s centrist alliance lagging in a distant third behind the left, projections by polling groups said overnight.

The projections gave the RN 34% of the vote, compared to 29.1% for the left-wing New Popular Front alliance, and just 22% for Macron’s centrist camp.

Many French voters are frustrated about inflation and other economic concerns, as well as Macron’s leadership, seen as arrogant and out-of-touch with their lives. The National Rally party has tapped that discontent, notably via online platforms such as TikTok. 

But the political frustration with the state of France’s economy, and the country’s role on the world stage, was matched by furious marchers, who have already begun destroying their own cities. 

Paris in particular has already seen crowds of people set flares off, smash shop windows in and light fires across the history city, which will host the Olympics in just 25 days. 

Barricades designed to keep crowds controlled were set alight, while countless protesters climbed up the Place de la Republique, the home of the iconic statue showing the personification of France, Marianne. 

Bins were overturned and set alight, spreading acrid smoke into the air. 

Young women trying to enjoy nights out in the city were forced to stand behind armoured cops, who fended off activists.  

Violence in Paris was so bad that riot police were forced to set off tear gas, while firefighters were called in to douse the blazes set by protestors. 

All the violence was launched in response to Le Pen’s win tonight.  

Le Pen, the daughter of the party’s racist and anti-Semitic father Jean-Marie, said Macron’s alliance was ‘almost wiped out’ during the first round of voting. 

The first round of this year’s election, called by Macron after a devastating loss in the European Parliament elections earlier this month, saw record levels of turnout. 

Polls suggested 67.5% of people votes in the national election, the highest participation in a regular format legislative election in France since 1981. The final turnout in 2022, the last time national elections were held in the nation, was just 47.5%.

Despite the win, it is still not currently clear whether Le Pen’s party would win an absolute majority of seats in the new National Assembly lower house in the July 7 second round and claim the post of prime minister. 

The second round will see run-off votes take place in seats where there was no absolute majority, allowing the final shape of the National Assembly to form. 

The vote could give 28-year-old RN party chief Jordan Bardella, a protege of its longtime leader Marine Le Pen, the chance to form a government, making it the first time the far-right takes the reins of power in France since the Nazi occupation during WWII. 

The last far-right leaders of France were Philippe Pétai and his prime minister, Pierre Laval, who headed the Vichy regime that collaborated with the Nazis during World War II. 

Bardella has previously said he would only form a government if the RN wins an absolute majority in the elections, but the party has said that the far-right wunderkind would become the country’s prime minister, while Macron would stay president until his term expires in 2027 in an awkward power-sharing arrangement called ‘cohabitation’ in France. 

Gabriel Attal, France’s current prime minister, said tonight that the ‘extreme right is on the verge of power’, adding: 

‘Not a single vote should go to the National Rally in such circumstances. France deserves that we do not hesitate. Never.’

Speaking from her constituency of Hénin-Beaumont, in northern France, where she was elected to parliament without the need for a second round, Le Pen said she said the RN was finally preparing for power for the first time in its history.

‘In democracy, nothing is healthier than political change,’ said Ms Le Pen. ‘We need an absolute majority for Jordan Bardella to be appointed prime minister by Emmanuel Macron.

‘I call on you to join the coalition of freedom, security and unity. No French person will lose rights – hope is reborn!’

Despite his humiliating third-place finish in the first round of voting, Macron called for a broad coalition to come together to stop the RN next weekend.

He said: ‘Faced with the National Rally, the time has come for a large, clearly democratic and Republican rally for the second round.’

Bardella hit back, telling voters that he would be the ‘protector’ of their rights and freedoms. 

‘Next Sunday, victory is possible and the alternative is possible’, he added. 

While RN has won many of France’s 577 seats overnight during the first round, very few have declared as wins of absolute majority, meaning they will run off to the second round. 

Ipsos, the polling company, previously estimated that nearly half of France’s constituencies will go to three-way runoffs, making a prediction of the final results incredibly difficult. 

Senior figures in the New Popular Front, the left-wing coalition that came second in the first round, have pledged to pull out of any races where NFP candidates came third and RN candidates came first, in order to allow citizens to vote out the far-right. 

Ensemble, the coalition that Macron leads, has done the same, local media reported. 

Talks over the next 48 hours will be crucial and could swing the results significantly, potentially deciding whether the RN reaches an outright majority in parliament or not. 

But much has already been decided by the voters, who have suffered through the anti-government ‘yellow vest’ movement, the Covid-19 pandemic, and the war in Ukraine. 

Macron aligned with allies offering support to Ukraine after Russia’s 2022 invasion, but he irritated many by continuing to engage with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Two years later however, some criticised him for his hawkish stance. Macron refuses to rule out sending troops to Ukraine, a move criticised by other Western countries as unnecessarily inflammatory.

The late Gerard Collomb, former mayor of Lyon, was more direct in his criticism, calling out Macron’s ‘hubris’ and a ‘lack of humility’ in the government.

The perception that Macron is increasingly isolated is part of the problem, said one former advisor.

‘He has no grassroots network… the people around him are the same, they don’t express the mood of the times,’ they added.

The same cannot be said for Bardella, a young, clean cut politician who has made clever use of TikTok – becoming a star in his own right on the social media app popular among the younger generations.

There, he has 1.5 million followers, meaning he has one of the largest TikTok followings in French politics. He has another 600,000 on Instagram.

By leveraging his social media presence, he has become the acceptable face of the French far right for the country’s young voters.

The party has still faced criticism though, with many denouncing what they see as a creeping acceptance of its xenophobic views.

Marine Le Pen has also been accused of having ties to Russian president Vladimir Putin, and of remaining soft on the despot despite his invasion of Ukraine in 2022 which continues to this day.

While Le Pen condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, she has also questioned resulting Western sanctions against Russia.

Her party also took out a $9 million loan from the First Czech-Russian bank in 2014 that many see as a Russian effort to influence French politics.