French Elections

Sense of urgency comes days after Marine Le Pen's far-right National Rally joined a left-wing coalition to topple the government, leaving France's political system in disarray

French President Emmanual Macron refused the resignation Monday of the country's prime minister, asking him on Monday to remain temporarily as the head of the government after chaotic election results left the government in limbo. French voters split the legislature on the left, center and far-right, leaving no faction even close to the majority needed to form a government. The results from Sunday's vote raised the risk of paralysis for the European Union's second-largest economy. President Emmanuel Macron gambled that his decision to call snap elections would give France a moment of clarification, but the outcome showed the opposite, less than three weeks before the start of the Paris Olympics thrusts the country on the international stage. France's main share index opened with a dip, but quickly recovered, possibly because markets had feared an outright victory for the far right or the leftist coalition. Prime Minister Gabriel Attal had said he would remain in office if needed bu

A total of 577 constituencies are being decided in the election, one for each seat in the National Assembly, the lower house of parliament

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is worried about the outcome of the run-off election in France. Scholz, who is normally tightlipped when asked about domestic politics in other European countries, has in recent weeks more than once expressed concern that the far-right, nationalist National Rally may win the second round of elections in neighbouring France on Sunday. Earlier this week, the decidedly pro-European German chancellor even revealed that he and beleaguered French President Emmanuel Macron are texting on a daily basis as the election draws closer. We are discussing the situation, which is really depressing," Scholz said at a summer gathering of his Social Democratic Party in Berlin on Tuesday, according to German news agency dpa. In any case, I am keeping my fingers crossed that the French, whom I love and appreciate so much, the country that means so much to me, will succeed in preventing a government led by a right-wing populist party," Scholz added in an unusually emotiona

Macron's unexpected decision, which amounts to a roll of the dice on his political future, could hand major political power to the far-right after years on the sidelines

Macron himself has yet to comment on the election result

Macron's camp fails to win absolute majority in parliament; will now seek alliances with other parties; risk of political paralysis if no deals

The 44-year-old centrist even took time ahead of an official visit to eastern Europe to discuss the vote

Macron won in the second round of the presidential election with 58.55 per cent of the votes, while his rival, far-right presidential candidate, leader of the National Rally party Marine Le Pen got 41

A chorus of European leaders hailed Macron's victory, since France has played a leading role in international efforts to punish Russia with sanctions and is supplying weapons to Ukraine

The two candidates for France's presidential runoff have cast their ballots and basked in adoring crowds outside their polling stations

Here's what to expect from them on major issues

Le Pen, who lost to Macron in 2017, termed the issue of cost of living as her biggest priority, saying she "will permanently cut VAT on energy" and "will also cut taxes, no income tax for under-30s"

U.S. Treasury yields have soared on expectations of more aggressive tightening by the Federal Reserve, boosting the greenback

Meanwhile, the dollar has been pushed higher by rising U.S. yields and expectations the Federal Reserve will act quickly to stem inflation

Far-right presidential candidate Marine Le Pen is second with 24.03 per cent

A Macron victory would be seen as a defeat for European populists. It might also not be cheered in the Kremlin

The euro's biggest losses on Tuesday were against the Swedish crown and Swiss franc, with falls of 0.4% and 0.2% respectively

Earlier, he was a Mayor of Le Havre; he is also a member of centre-right Les Republicains party

The big question is whether he can govern the country without the support of a traditional party