The first estimates of the results of the European elections in France were broadcast by four pollsters at 8:00 pm Sunday 26th May, 2019
The National Rally comes at the top of the European elections , ahead of The Republic in March , according to the first estimates released at 8pm by four institutes Sunday 26th May, 2019.
The extreme right-wing movement and its top- ranked Jordan Bardella would get between 23 and 24.2% of the vote, close to its 2014 European score (24.9%).
The pro-Macron Renaissance list led by former minister Nathalie Loiseau is credited from 21.9% to 23%, slightly below the result of Emmanuel Macron in the first round of the presidential election (24.01%).
Marine Le Pen calls for the dissolution of the National Assembly
The entourage of the head of state defended an “Honorable score”. Emmanuel Macron plans to “intensify act 2 of his five-year term” and will make “no change of course,” said the Elysee.
EN DIRECT | Déclaration du Premier ministre @EPhilippePM. #Européennes2019 https://t.co/hXvcLYCaIu
— Gouvernement (@gouvernementFR) 26 May 2019
But for Marine Le Pen , the president “has no choice but to dissolve the National Assembly”. “The power in place is suffering a real failure. Tonight it is he and his policies that are rejected, “lambasted Jordan Bardella.
📹 « Les Français ont placé la liste du RN conduite par @J_Bardella en tête des élections #Européennes2019.
J’y vois #LaVictoireDuPeuple qui, avec fierté et dignité, a repris ce soir le pouvoir.
Un grand mouvement pour l’alternance est né. » pic.twitter.com/i7tXnKLoMB
— Marine Le Pen (@MLP_officiel) 26 May 2019
Video. Speech by Jordan Bardella after the RN’s victory in the European elections
Green surprise
This duo, the same as in 2017, is clearly ahead of the other lists.
But the ecologists of Europe Ecology-Greens led by Yannick Jadot are the main surprise of the poll, arriving third according to the institutes, between 12,5 and 13%, whereas they were given under 10% by the polls.
“It’s a European green wave of which we are the actors,” enthused his head of the list Yannick Jadot , referring to the breakthrough of the German Greens beyond 20%. His supporters shouted “The winners of the evening is us! ”
De la satisfaction ici au moment du décompte final #cohérence #responsabilité #écologie pic.twitter.com/CuMqesRz82
— Yannick Jadot (@yjadot) 26 May 2019
Slap for Republicans and insubordinate France
The atmosphere was diametrically opposed among the Republicans. Led by the conservative philosopher François-Xavier Bellamy , they fall below the 10% mark (8% to 9% according to pollsters) is the worst score in the history of the right and very far from the score of the UMP in 2014 (20.81%).
“The reconstruction will be long and demanding,” acknowledged Laurent Wauquiez, accusing Emmanuel Macron of having been “the architect of the progression” of the RN.
Je veux remercier tous ceux qui nous ont fait confiance pour cette élection et qui ont défendu jusqu’au bout leurs convictions sur l’Europe. Dans ce vote, il y a de la colère, du désarroi et de l’attente. Nous avons trois ans pour faire naître de l’espoir. pic.twitter.com/1F5btEYydV
— Laurent Wauquiez (@laurentwauquiez) 26 May 2019
The failure is also scathing for the list of France Insoumise (LFI) led by Manon Aubry , who sails according to estimates between 6 and 7%, very far from the score achieved by Jean-Luc Mélenchon in the presidential election (19.58% ).
Comme en 2014, le Rassemblement National arrive de nouveau en tête des élections. C’est une mauvaise nouvelle. Alors que l’extrême-droite est l’ennemi mortel de la démocratie, la majorité présidentielle a sciemment choisi de lui donner un rôle central dans ces élections.
— Manon Aubry (@ManonAubryFr) 26 May 2019
Ce résultat est très décevant. Mais il nous permet d’envoyer au Parlement européen plusieurs députés. Nous continuerons à porter conjointement, élus européens et de l’Assemblée nationale, notre programme écologique et social. #Electionseuropeenne2019 #ElectionsUE2019
— Jean-Luc Mélenchon (@JLMelenchon) 26 May 2019
Historically low score for the PS
As for the Party-Socialist-Public Place alliance led by Raphael Glucksmann , it also collects between 6 and 7%, again its worst score in the European, but which nevertheless allows him to keep MEPs.
The other lists (Upright France, Communist Party, Generations, UDI …) got less than 5% needed to send representatives to the European Parliament. A record number of 34 lists, including two lists of “yellow jackets” at 0.5% cumulated, contributed to this election which returned to a single national constituency.
Of the 79 seats allocated to France in the European Parliament, the RN would get between 22 and 24 seats, LREM / MoDem 21 to 23, EELV 12 to 13, LR 8 to 9, PS-Place Publique and LFI 6 to 7 seats each.
Strong participation
The first surprise of this election, the first since the beginning of the five-year period, was the much stronger participation than expected despite a sluggish campaign.
According to the polls, the number of voters would be between 51% and 54%, seven to ten points higher than in the last election in 2014.
It would be even the highest turnout for a European election in a quarter of a century (52.7% in 1994), or even 35 years (56.7%) in 1984, breaking with the erosion of the vote during recent European polls.
At 17h, the participation stood at 43.29% , up eight points from 2014 (35.07%), according to the Ministry of the Interior. This rate was already higher than the final participation of five years ago, which amounted to 42.4% for the whole of France.
Revers for Emmanuel Macron?
After six months of crisis “yellow vests”, the second place on the list Renaissance (LREM-Modem-Act …) is a new setback for the executive of Emmanuel Macron and his Prime Minister Edouard Philippe, who were both actively involved in the campaign. Although the majority seems to limit the damage in view of the first estimates.
The head of state said on May 9th that he would “put all (his) energy so that the RN is not in the lead.” The Prime Minister has for his part scoured a dozen meetings since early May.
Since the first European elections in 1979, the list supported by the head of state has won only twice (1979 under Giscard D’Estaing and 2009 under Nicolas Sarkozy). Otherwise, she was beaten.
The Renaissance list, however, avoids recent rumblings of ruling parties, such as the 2014 PS (14%).
Marine Le Pen had made this election an anti-Macron referendum. “Sunday’s vote depends all the rest of the term in office,” she said Friday at the last meeting, launching a broad appeal to right-wing voters, LR and DLF, and insubordinate France to encourage them to vote ” useful “against the Head of State.
Emmanuel Macron returned at the end of the afternoon at the Elysee Palace after voting at the Touquet town hall at midday. Marine Le Pen voted in his stronghold of Hénin-Beaumont (Pas-de-Calais). She should quickly speak after a first reaction of Jordan Bardella.
European results after 11pm
Nearly 47 million voters were called upon to designate the 79 French MEPs, five more than in 2014, after the UK’s decision to leave the European Union. The last five elected representatives, however, will have to wait until the Brexit is effective to sit.
Right and left have shared power almost continuously since 1979 in the Strasbourg Parliament.
Throughout the European Union, the official results will only be published at 11 pm, the closing time of the ballot in Italy.
