PARIS: French President Emmanuel Macron enjoyed no respite on Monday as, hours after he won re-election by defeating the far right’s Marine Le Pen, political opponents called on voters to deny him a parliamentary majority.

If he fails to score another victory in the June 12 and 19 parliamentary elections, the pro-European, centrist president will struggle to advance with his pro-business agenda, including unpopular plans to push back the retirement age.

“Voting isn’t over, the legislative elections are the third round,” said Jordan Bardella, a close Le Pen ally, telling voters: “Don’t put all the power in Emmanuel Macron’s hands.”

The hard left’s Jean-Luc Melenchon, who came third — just behind Le Pen — in the April 10 first round of the election, said Macron had been elected “by default”.

“Don’t give up,” he told supporters. “You can beat Macron (in the parliamentary election) and choose a different path.” Le Pen’s niece, Marion Marechal, who defected to writer-turned-nationalist presidential challenger Eric Zemmour before the election, urged her aunt and party leaders to organise a meeting to discuss a possible parliamentary pact.

“Without a coalition, Macron will have all the powers and Melenchon will be the first opposition group,” Marechal wrote on Twitter. “With a coalition, we can turn the national camp into the biggest force in the Assembly!”.

In recent French legislative ballots, the president’s party has always won a majority in parliament.

Should the outcome be different this time, Macron would have little choice but to name a prime minister from another party, ushering in what has traditionally been a tense period of “cohabitation” during which presidential powers are severely curbed.

A government source said the president was at a retreat in Versailles consulting political figures such as ex-presidents Francois Hollande and Nicolas Sarkozy.

Macron was also scheduled to speak to US President Joe Biden later on Monday, the White House said.

During a cohabitation, the president remains the head of the armed forces and retains some foreign policy influence but the government has responsibility for most other day-to-day matters of state and policy.

“The reality is there is more to the French election story than Macron’s win yesterday,” said Rabobank FX strategist Jane Foley.

Final results of Sunday’s runoff showed Macron took 58.54pc of the vote. While a clear win, the result also gave the far right its biggest share of the presidential ballot on record.

Macron and his allies pledged to govern differently and listen more to voters, hoping it will help them win a crucial majority in parliament.

Published in Dawn, April 26th, 2022