Macron set for majority after French parliamentary poll's first round

France's newly re-elected president Emmanuel Macron has clinched the chance of a majority in the National Assembly in the first round of the parliamentary election, official preliminary results showed.

The president's centrist camp received 25.75% of votes, according to preliminary figures by the Interior Ministry on Sunday night.

The new left-wing alliance of leftists, communists, Greens and socialists led by left-wing politician Jean-Luc Mélenchon received 25.66%, just some 21,400 votes shy of Macron's camp - with around 48.7 million eligible voters.

However, projections predict a clear majority for the liberal president in the distribution of seats after the second round of elections in a week's time.

Initial forecasts show that the Macron camp could win around 255 to 310 of the 577 seats in the National Assembly, meaning it is unclear whether he will have enough for an absolute majority of at least 289 seats.

The result is a success for the Mélenchon-led new left-wing alliance.

However, projections give this recently formed camp only about 150 to 210 of the seats. The differences between the percentage of votes and the distribution of seats is due to France's complex electoral system, in which votes only count towards the winner in one respective constituency.

France's Prime Minister Élisabeth Borne welcomed the initial results of the first round of the parliamentary elections.

"We are the only political force capable of getting a majority in the National Assembly," Borne said on Sunday evening, while also indirectly warning voters of the dangers of backing the left. "We cannot take the risk of instability," she said.

"Our first common task is to persuade people back to the ballot boxes," Borne added as she called on those who had not voted to do so in the second round.

Turnout only reached 47.51%, according to the Interior Ministry, a record low.

However, Mélenchon claimed the results were a clear defeat for his opponent. "The truth is that the presidential party was beaten and defeated in the first round," he said.

"Given this result and the extraordinary opportunity it represents for our personal lives and the future of our common homeland, I call on our people to storm the polls next Sunday to reject, once and for all, the disastrous projects of Mr Macron's majority."

The leader of the conservative The Republicans, Christian Jacob, said his party remained an important political force for the years ahead. The party expects 40 to 80 seats.

Meanwhile far-right nationalist Marine Le Pen claimed the results were an "immense victory" and looked ahead to the next round of voting.

"It is important that Emmanuel Macron does not have an absolute majority, which he will abuse to apply his self-centred and brutal methods," she said.

For Macron, the parliamentary election is about whether he will be able to implement his plans during his second term, including a controversial pension reform and urgently needed improvements in education and health care.

Macron also wants to focus more on environmental policy and expand both nuclear power and renewable energies. For this, he needs a majority in parliament.

If Macron's votes are only enough for a relative majority, the president and the government would be forced to seek support from other camps. It is likely that there would then be a minority government that tries to rely on centre-left or centre-right forces, depending on the project.

Even though many French people were dissatisfied with Macron's results in office, the 44-year-old leader benefited from the fact that the parliamentary election in France is perceived as a confirmation of the presidential election. Traditionally, mainly supporters of the winner take part in the vote, while others often stay at home.

Regardless of the exact balance of power in parliament, Germany and Europe can continue to count on France as a reliable partner. Macron will not allow any compromises on his pro-European course and the solidarity with Berlin.

France will also remain an integral part of the West's united front against Russia, the aggressor in the Ukraine conflict. It is expected that Socialists and Republicans will vote with the Macron camp on European issues rather than blocking them.

Although Macron's presidential race against Le Pen was tighter than anticipated, her National Rally party was less well represented in the parliamentary election. According to preliminary official results the party received 18.68% of the vote and can only hope to win 10 to 45 seats, as the other parties will try to unite against them.

The Republicans - the strongest opposition force until now - suffered another electoral defeat with only 10.42% of the vote. Projections put them at 40 to 80 seats.

Macron's biggest threat in the first round of the parliamentary elections did not come from the right, but from Mélenchon, a left-wing veteran who has managed to unite the fragmented left behind him.

A shrewd speaker and strategist, he has distinguished himself in a campaign from which Macron had remained distant until the final days.