63% of French voters turned out to vote for the second round of the country's snap parliamentary elections on Sunday, July 7, slightly less than for the first round (65%). It is the highest turnout since 1981. These figures confirm intense interest in the vote,
Le Monde reports.
President Emmanuel Macron called the snap elections three years ahead of time after his forces were trounced in June's European parliament vote, a gamble which seems to have backfired. The left won 182 seats, ahead of President Emmanuel Macron's coalition (168 seats) and the far-right Rassemblement National and its allies (143 seats), according to final results.
These results mean France will have a hung parliament, with three major blocs but no clear majority. That leaves Macron in a position to negotiate with parties that have long been in opposition to him to try to form a coalition government.
