Jul 18 () –
France’s divided National Assembly failed to elect a lower house speaker in the first round on Thursday, with left-wing New Popular Front candidate André Chassaigne leading the way, followed by far-right National Rally candidate Sébastien Chenu.
Chassaigne, MP for the 5th district of the Puy-de-Dome constituency, obtained 200 votes in the first round, while a total of 142 MPs supported Chenu, vice-president of the National Rally.
Macronist Yael Braun-Pivet, the last speaker of the House, came third with 124 votes. Both the Republicans’ candidate Philippe Juvin and Naima Moutchou of the Horizons party withdrew their candidacy in the second round after obtaining 48 and 38 votes respectively.
The candidate of the independent Liot group, Charles de Courson, received 18 votes. The start of the 17th legislative session has begun with voting to elect the president. A second round is expected, according to BFM TV.
According to the rules, the candidate must obtain an absolute majority of votes – set at 285 – in the first or second round. In the event that the Lower House does not reach a consensus, a relative majority in the third round would be sufficient.
Leading figures on the French left have accused Macron’s supporters of forging “alliances” – not only with right-wing parties, but also with those of National Rally leader Marine Le Pen – to ensure that Braun-Pivet has the necessary support to renew her mandate at the head of the Assembly.
The Socialist Party, La France Insoumise, the Communist Party and the Greens – the main members of the New Popular Front – reached an agreement yesterday to present the communist André Chassaigne as a united candidate for the presidency of the Assembly. However, negotiations to reach a consensus and present a candidate for prime minister remain at a standstill.
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