Politics Workers in France vote right, senior citizens vote for Macron's camp
The right-wing nationalists around Marine Le Pen have received a particularly large number of votes in France among workers and people without higher education. The Ipsos Institute wrote after the first round of the parliamentary elections that the Rassemblement National had scored points with its traditional electorate.
01.07.2024, 12:06
SDA
However, it had expanded its vote camp overall and also received significantly more support from women and people under 35. Overall, the right-wing nationalists and their allies came first with 33.15 percent.
French President Emmanuel Macron's centrist camp once again received votes primarily from senior citizens and the financially better off. Macron's forces only came third with 20.04% of the vote. According to Ipsos, they lost votes across the entire electorate and not just among certain groups.
The new left-wing alliance Nouveau Front Populaire, which came second with 27.99%, was mainly voted for by younger people, people in larger cities and people with higher levels of education, according to Ipsos.
Overall, significantly more people voted on Sunday than in a first round of parliamentary elections in previous decades. Voter turnout was 66.71 percent. According to Ipsos, however, none of the camps benefited more than others from this mobilization.
The majority voting system in parliamentary elections makes it difficult for small parties. Their candidates often do not even make it to the second round, which is decisive in many places. In the past, this system mainly benefited the large mainstream parties. In the meantime, however, these parties have lost popularity. The Rassemblement National has become stronger and is much better anchored locally. As a result, the electoral system is no longer an obstacle for the far-right party.
