Marine Le Pen

French candidates make hurried deals to try to stop far-right National Rally from leading government

French opposition parties are making hurried deals to try to block a landslide victory for Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally in Sunday’s second round of legislative elections.

Le Pen first had success in an ex-mining town. Her message there is now winning over French society

At 28, Bardella could become youngest French prime minister at helm of far-right National Rally

French far-right leader Le Pen questions president’s role as army chief ahead of parliament election

French opposition parties on the left and right seek alliances ahead of snap elections

AP explains what is at stake following first round of the French Elections

The far-right National Rally leaped into a strong lead in France’s first round of legislative elections, polling agencies projected, bringing the party closer to being able to form a government in round two and dealing a major slap to centrist President Emmanuel Macron and his risky decision to call the surprise ballot. The Associated Press Western Europe News Director Angela Charlton said Macron’s “decision to call these snap elections is looking like a massive political miscalculation.”

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Some French voters remain puzzled as to why Macron dissolved National Assembly

France’s National Rally party well ahead in EU elections, according to projected results

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Macron hopes to contain far right in national elections after it surged in EU vote. It’s a risky bet

French President Emmanuel Macron called snap legislative elections after his pro-European party was handed a chastening defeat and projected to garner less than half the support of Marine Le Pen’s National Rally.

Macron dissolves the French parliament and calls a snap election after defeat in EU vote

French President Emmanuel Macron has decided to dissolve the lower house of the parliament and to call general elections.

France’s far right may win big in the EU elections. That’s worrying for migrants, Macron and Ukraine

French far-right leader Marine Le Pen is likely to emerge as a big winner at the weekend’s European Parliament elections even though she isn’t even on the ballot.

France’s Macron defends divisive immigration bill and denies it marks tilt by government to right

French President Emmanuel Macron says a contentious immigration bill backed by the far right is imperfect and needs some fixes but is “what the French wanted.”

More than 180,000 people across France march against soaring antisemitism amid the Israel-Hamas war

More than 180,000 people across France, including 100,000 in Paris, have marched peacefully to protest against rising antisemitism in the wake of Israel’s ongoing war against Hamas in Gaza.

French far-right leader Marine Le Pen raises a storm over her plan to march against antisemitism

French far-right leader Marine Le Pen has set off a cacophony of criticism over her plans to attend a weekend march to protest rising antisemitism in France.

French far-right party elects new leader to replace Le Pen

An ambitious 27-year-old has been elected to replace Marine Le Pen as president of France’s main far-right party National Rally.

Macron visits Paris mosque to mark its 100th anniversary

French President Emmanuel Macron has visited Paris’ main mosque to mark 100 years since it was built -- a stop to show how the French leader wishes to represent all factions of French society months after his reelection.

France reshaped: Election emboldens Le Pen, undercuts Macron

France has awakened to an ecstatic Marine Le Pen after her party’s far-right candidates for parliament sent shockwaves through the political establishment.

Why France’s parliamentary elections are important to Macron

Emmanuel Macron saw off the far right’s Marine Le Pen in April’s presidential election, but now the French president is facing a threat from the other end of the political spectrum in the fight for parliamentary power.

Emmanuel who? Far-right fighting hard-left for French vote

The stakes are high, the fight nasty and the party of centrist President Emmanuel Macron is the one to beat.

France’s President Macron inaugurated for second 5-year term

French President Emmanuel Macron has been inaugurated for a second five-year term. The 44-year-old leader vowed Saturday to first take action to avoid any further escalation of Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Far-right Le Pen plots parliament win after loss to Macron

French far-right leader Marine Le Pen is gathering her party’s troops, not to mourn her loss in the presidential election but to plot out a victory in France’s parliamentary election in June.

Analysis: Loss is victory for far-right in France’s election

One of the headlines from the presidential election in France is that the far-right has come out of the cold and gone mainstream.

To Europe’s relief, France’s Macron wins but far-right gains

French President Emmanuel Macron has comfortably won reelection to a second term. His victory Sunday triggered waves of relief among allies that France won’t abruptly shift course in the midst of a war in Ukraine from European and NATO efforts to punish and contain Russia.

EXPLAINER: How France’s old-school voting system works

French voters in the presidential election are using an old-school voting system that has defied calls for more flexibility or modernization.

French election: Macron in pole position, Le Pen racing hard

French President Emmanuel Macron is in the pole position to win reelection Sunday in France’s presidential runoff.

France’s two presidential contenders: Who’s proposing what

It’s crunch time for voters in France as centrist incumbent President Emmanuel Macron is meeting far-right nationalist Marine Le Pen of the National Rally at the ballot box for Sunday’s final presidential vote.

AP-Week in Pictures: Global

April 16-22, 2022

From Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, Duke and Duchess of Sussex, hugging Lisa Johnston, a former army medic and amputee, who celebrates with her medal at the Invictus Games venue in The Hague, Netherlands, to Valentyna Nechyporenko, 77, mourning at the grave of her son Ruslan, 47, who was killed by

Macron, Le Pen trade blows in final day of campaign

The finalists for France’s presidency, President Emmanuel Macron and far-right leader Marine Le Pen, traded blows on the last day of legal campaigning as they tried to appeal to undecided voters.

Le Pen’s far-right vision: Retooling France at home, abroad

Marine Le Pen’s vision for France — if the far-right leader wins Sunday’s presidential runoff — would include no Muslim headscarves in public, schoolchildren in uniforms and laws passed by referendum.

AP Week in Pictures: Europe and Africa

APRIL 15 – APRIL 21

As Russian attacks continued across Ukraine this week dominating the news, France was preparing for the presidential runoff election on April 24 where far-right leader Marine Le Pen is trying to unseat centrist President Emmanuel Macron.

Macron woos leftist voters as French campaign nears end

French President Emmanuel Macron is visiting a multicultural, working-class suburb north of Paris to woo leftist voters ahead of Sunday’s presidential runoff against far-right challenger Marine Le Pen.

Tensions over race, religion in France’s presidential race

France’s presidential campaign has been difficult for voters of immigrant heritage and religious minorities.

Macron attacks Le Pen on Russia, Muslim headscarf ban pledge

French President Emmanuel Macron has torn into his far-right challenger Marine Le Pen in a television debate for her ties to Russia and for wanting to strip Muslim women of their right to cover their heads in public, as he seeks the votes he needs to win another 5-year term.

Russia’s Navalny accuses Le Pen of Kremlin ties before vote

Imprisoned Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny waded into France’s tight presidential campaign, urging voters to back incumbent Emmanuel Macron in Sunday’s runoff and alleging that far-right challenger Marine Le Pen is too closely linked to Russia.

France: EU fraud agency investigating candidate Le Pen

Paris prosecutors are studying a report by the EU fraud agency accusing French far-right presidential candidate Marine Le Pen of misusing public funds while serving in the European Parliament.

Macron, Le Pen decry ‘shocking’ Stellantis CEO pay

French President Emmanuel Macron and his far-right challenger in the French presidential vote, Marine Le Pen, have decried as “shocking” the multimillion euro payout to the CEO of carmaker Stellantis.

French presidential campaign spotlights Muslim headscarves

Muslim headscarves have taken center stage in France’s presidential campaign amid far-right candidate Marine Le Pen’s push to ban them.

In France’s election, a meaty issue unites Jews and Muslims

French far-right presidential candidate Marine Le Pen is alarming both Muslims and Jews in France with a pledge to regulate the ritual slaughter of animals if she is elected.