France: President Emmanuel Macron expected to lose majority

Picture Courtesy: Reuters

French President Emmanuel Macron, who was recently re-elected as the president, is expected to lose majority in the National Assembly. This comes after his centrist Ensemble coalition won Sunday's parliamentary elections. However, he is set to lose dozens of seats and will struggle to pass reforms.

The recently formed alliance between left, far-left and green parties came in second, followed by Marine Le Pen's far-right party in third.

French Prime Minister, Elisabeth Borne said on TV that the situation was unprecedented and modern France had never seen a National Assembly like this one. She said, "This situation represents a risk for our country, given the risks we're facing nationally and internationally. We will work as of tomorrow to build a working majority.”

Emmanuel Macron currently has more than 300 seats in the Parliament, however, after Sunday’s elections, his numbers are expected to be between 235 to 240 seats. He needs 289 seats for a majority.

Among the ministers to lose their seats was Health Minister Brigitte Bourguignon, who lost to her far-right opponent by just 56 votes. Green Transition Minister Amélie de Montchalin was also defeated, but another key figure, Europe Minister Clément Beaune, survived despite losing in the first round.