The first round of voting in France’s lower house election started on Sunday.
The far-right National Rally, which supports a nationalistic policy and tighter regulations on immigration, is expected to gain seats, as some voters have expressed dissatisfaction with President Emmanuel Macron.
Macron dissolved the parliament and called a snap election after the National Rally defeated his centrist coalition in the European Union’s parliamentary elections earlier this month.
Macron’s party and its coalition partners, the National Rally, and the newly formed leftist New Popular Front alliance are vying for votes.
A public opinion poll released on Friday suggests that the National Rally and candidates with ties to the party could nearly triple their number to become the biggest force in the National Assembly.
A woman in her 70’s who says she voted for the National Rally says that the government should protect people’s safety, and that she wants a change.
A woman in her 60’s says that she is “shocked” that a far-right party is winning support, and that she voted for the New Popular Front alliance to stop this. She said Macron “seems to be far away from reality.”
The results of the first round of voting are expected on Sunday evening.
The second round will be held on July 7 in electoral districts in which no winner emerged in the first round.