LONDON: European parliament elections are a collection of national contests. They often matter more domestically than they do in Brussels or Strasbourg, given the diffuse nature of power and decision-making in the EU. France’s President Emmanuel Macron proved the point in spectacular fashion on Sunday (Jun 9) night, stunning his country and the rest of Europe when he announced snap elections for the National Assembly in just three weeks’ time, with a second round vote on Jul 7.
Macron was responding to the resounding victory of Marine Le Pen’s far-right Rassemblement National (RN) in Sunday’s European parliament poll. The RN won 31.5 per cent of the vote, more than double Macron’s centrist alliance.
By calling national elections, Macron looks like he wants to block Le Pen’s path to the presidency in 2027, forcing the French people to decide whether they really want the RN in power. The outcome of that French vote might matter more for the future direction of the EU than the results of the European parliament vote on Sunday. The latter shifted the dial of EU politics to the right, but not in a decisive way.
Populist and far-right MEPs will probably make up just short of a quarter of the parliament. That is a considerable jump from the 5 per cent or so they won 15 years ago. But they are not taking over the assembly, let alone the EU.
They are split between two main groups and several unattached parties. THE CRUMBLING CORDON SANITAIRE The dream of a Eurosceptic supe.
