After his party’s decisive defeat to the far-right Rassemblement National in the recent European parliamentary elections, French President Emmanuel Macron shocked everyone by dissolving the National Assembly and calling early elections. He justified his decision by claiming that elections would “clarify” the political situation, but many of his compatriots did not share this view.
Even those who aren’t worried that Macron’s gamble will bring the far right to power in full force worry about the chaos that could ensue. As Edouard Philippe, Macron’s prime minister from 2017 to 2020, put it, the president has needlessly “killed the presidential majority.” A stalemated parliament with Rassemblement National as the largest party is now the most likely outcome after the first round of voting on Sunday.
Yet Macron’s decision has made one thing clear: his strategy to create a powerful centrism in France has failed. Other European leaders should take note.
