French Prime Minister to Resign After Left-Wing Coalition Wins Most Seats in Election

France's Prime Minister Gabriel Attal gives a speech following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election at Matignon in Paris on July 7, 2024. (Ludovic Marin/AFP via Getty Images)

Final results in France say a leftist coalition has won the most parliamentary seats in runoff elections. There was high voter turnout.

President Emmanuel Macron’s centrist alliance has come in second and the ring-wing National Rally party in third. No one has a majority of parliament seats. The National Rally party has drastically increased the number of seats it holds in parliament but fell far short of expectations.

The prime minister says he will turn in his resignation.

Here’s the latest:

Final Results

Final results say a coalition of the French left has won the most seats in legislative elections.

The leftist New Popular Front coalition has taken the most seats in parliament, with at least 181. Mr. Macron’s centrists have more than 160 seats. Marine Le Pen’s National Rally have 143 seats after leading in the first round. There is no majority for anyone.

Mr. Macron will have to form alliances to run the government.

France now faces the prospect of a hung parliament.

French Prime Minister Says He Will Resign

French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal says he will resign after a leftist coalition surged to the lead in legislative elections.

Mr. Attal says he will remain in the post during the upcoming Paris Olympics and for as long as needed, given that polling projections show that no party has won an outright majority. There likely will be weeks of intense political negotiations to choose a new prime minister and form a government.

Macron Will Wait to Make Decisions on New Government

Mr. Macron’s office says he will “wait for the new National Assembly to organize itself” before making any decisions on the new government.

The National Assembly is scheduled to gather in full session for the first time on July 18. The statement says Mr. Macron will ensure the “sovereign choice of the French people will be respected.”

Surprise polling projections say a coalition on the left that came together to try to keep the right wing from power has won the most parliamentary seats, with Mr. Macron’s alliance second and the National Rally third.

The president of the National Rally has claimed historic gains for the party.

In a speech after the second-round vote, Jordan Bardella denounced the political maneuvering that led the National Rally to fall far short of expectations. An unprecedented number of candidates who qualified for the runoff stepped aside to allow an opponent to go head-to-head with the National Rally candidate, increasing the chances of defeating them.

The nationalist party still increased its seat count in parliament to an unprecedented high, according to polling projections. No party won a majority.

Turnout at 59.71 Percent 3 Hours Before Polls Close

With three hours to go before polls close in France’s second round of high-stakes legislative elections, the latest figure on the turnout is 59.71 percent. It’s the highest turnout since 1981 at this time on voting day.

The overall turnout is on track to be the highest in four decades. Polls close at 8 p.m. local time.

Macron Votes

Mr. Macron voted in the legislative elections on Sunday.

Early Turnout Reported

As of noon local time, turnout was at 26.63 percent, according to France’s interior ministry. That’s slightly higher than the 25.90 percent reported at the same time during the first round of voting last Sunday.

Prime Minister Casts Ballot in Paris Suburb

Prime Minister Gabriel Attal cast his ballot in the Paris suburb of Vanves Sunday morning.

Ms. Le Pen is not voting after winning her district in northern France outright last week.

Across France, 76 other candidates secured seats in the first round, including 39 from Ms. Le Pen’s National Rally and 32 from the leftist New Popular Front alliance. Two candidates from Mr. Macron’s party also won their seats in the first round.

Polls Open in Mainland France

Voting opened Sunday in mainland France for the second round of high-stakes legislative elections that already saw the largest gains ever for the National Rally on June 30.

If granted an absolute majority, the National Rally will control the National Assembly and 28-year-old leader Jordan Bardella will become prime minister.

If support is further eroded for Mr. Macron’s weak majority coalition, he will be forced to share power with parties opposed to most of his pro-European Union policies.

The electoral campaign has been marred with accusations of racism and anti-Semitism, and more than 50 candidates reported being physically attacked. The government is deploying 30,000 police on voting day.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.