The New Popular Front proposes a meeting with the Macronists to block the National Rally in Parliament

16 Jul. () –

France’s progressive New Popular Front bloc has proposed a meeting with some of the main liberal and centrist parties close to French President Emmanuel Macron to set a strategy to prevent Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally (AN) from reaching senior positions in Parliament in the coming term.

“We believe that the National Rally has no place in the position of one of the highest authorities of our Republic (…) we therefore invite them to reject the trivialisation and legitimisation of the extreme right in the National Assembly,” reads a joint statement by the parliamentary leaders of La France Insoumise, the Socialist Party, the communists and the ecologists.

The letter is addressed directly to the leaders of the Juntos coalition – the formula promoted by Macron for the elections – as well as to the Horizontes party of former Prime Minister Edouard Philippe, the Democratic Movement, and the parliamentary group of the Republican Right, according to the French television channel BFMTV.

The main aim of this proposal is to prevent Le Pen’s party from obtaining the post of vice-president of the lower house of parliament. Meanwhile, the National Rally has already demanded the presidency of the Finance Committee, which it believes is a post that should be reserved for the opposition.

The New Popular Front also urged Macronists and centrist parties not to equate the National Rally with La France Insoumise, while recalling that thanks to the withdrawal of some progressive candidates, it was possible to unite forces to beat Le Pen in certain constituencies in the recent legislative elections.