Macron's coalition edges ahead of left in first round

The coalition of French President Emmanuel Macron took a slight lead over the left-wing challenger group in Sunday's first round of parliamentary elections that saw a record-low voter turnout.

Macron's centrist coalition, the Ensemble, performed much worse than in the first round in 2017 and won 25.75 percent of the votes, while the united left NUPES led by Jean-Luc Melenchon received 25.66 percent, with a difference of only 21,000 votes, according to figures from the French Interior Ministry.

The far-right National Rally, led by Marine Le Pen, obtained 18.68 percent of the votes. Voter turnout was a record low of only 47.5 percent.

While polls suggest that Macron's coalition will still lead in the second-round runoff election on Sunday, it is uncertain if it can still secure an absolute majority by winning 289 of the 577 seats in the National Assembly, the lower house of the French legislature.

The latest Ipsos/Sopra Steria projections show that Macron's coalition could win anywhere from 255 to 295 seats, while NUPES is forecast to seize between 150 and 190 seats.

Macron's coalition currently has 345 seats but may lose many of the seats this time, according to projections.

"The truth is that the president's party is beaten and defeated," said Melenchon, who finished third in the first presidential election round, on Sunday night. He urged voters to show up in the second round on Sunday "to reject definitively the disastrous policies of Mr Macron's majority".

NUPES, an unexpected alliance that consists of the La France Insoumise, Socialist, Green and Communist parties, has gained attention in the past weeks.

Macron's new prime minister, Elisabeth Borne, described the Ensemble as "the only political force capable of obtaining a majority in the National Assembly", saying "we cannot risk instability".

Key issue

A key issue has been retirement－Macron has pushed to raise the retirement age from 62 to 65, while Melenchon promised to lower it to 60. Melenchon has also promised to freeze prices on 100 essentials and create a million jobs.

There has also been deep concern among the French public over soaring living costs, which triggered the anti-government Yellow Vest movement in late 2018.

Far-right politician Eric Zemmour, who drew huge attention during the presidential election in April, was eliminated in the first round on Sunday in his bid to represent Saint-Tropez, a town in the French Riviera.

The French parliamentary election is seen as having huge consequences not just for France, but also for the European Union, as France is a key member and Macron is called by some the EU's de facto leader. Losing the absolute majority would make it difficult for Macron to achieve his agenda, including tackling thorny issues on the economic and foreign policy front.

Agencies contributed to this story.