Left-Wing coalition leads in French election

In the decisive second round of the French parliamentary election, the left-wing coalition New People’s Front (NFP) is projected to secure between 178 and 205 seats in the National Assembly. President Emmanuel Macron’s alliance, Ensemble, which includes his Renaissance party, is expected to come in second with 157 to 174 seats. The right-wing National Rally, which had been leading in polls, is projected to win between 113 and 148 seats. Voter turnout was around 67.5 percent. If these initial projections hold, it would be a significant disappointment for the leaders of National Rally, Marine Le Pen and Jordan Bardella, who had hoped to secure an absolute majority requiring at least 289 seats. The projections are based on the analysis by several French institutes, as reported by Reuters. These numbers will be updated as the vote count progresses through Sunday evening.