French President Emmanuel Macron has asked Prime Minister Gabriel Attal to continue working in his position “for now” as none of the major alliances secured enough seats in the second round of snap parliamentary elections to form a government. Attal had gone to submit his resignation, but Macron asked him to stay to ensure stability in the country.
Attal, representing a political formation without a majority, had announced his resignation after the first round of results. He praised the absence of extreme parties like the far-right National Rally and the left-wing New Popular Front.
The New Popular Front is projected to win over 180 seats, the centrist Together for the Republic over 160 seats, and Marine Le Pen’s RN over 140 seats. None of these alliances are expected to secure an absolute majority in the 577-seat National Assembly.
The RN received 29.26% of the vote (37 seats), the NFP 28.06% (32 seats), and Together 20.04% (2 seats). Macron called for early elections after RN’s victory in the European Parliament elections in June.