St-Pierre-et-Miquelon was the first overseas territory to vote, at noon Paris time.
Guyana, the West Indies and also some French people from abroad followed, especially those in America.
In Guadeloupe, the Secretary of State in charge of the sea, Justine Benin, is on ballot at the end of the first round and plays her role against the diverse-left candidate Christian Baptiste, and Olivier Serva, recently resigned from the presidential majority.
The turnout at 5 p.m. was estimated at 26.71%, up from 2017 (22.55%), according to the prefecture.
In Martinique, the only outgoing deputy to stand for re-election, Jean-Philippe Nilor (Democratic and Republican Left), was put on ballot in the 4th constituency by the former president of the local authority, Alfred Marie-Jeanne, 85, his former mentor.
“There have been major social movements in Martinique lately, you have to vote. For the West Indies, the prices of basic necessities are too expensive”, estimates in Fort-de-France, Jean-Michel Pastourely, retired from 64 years old came to vote at the Simone Vaton school.
At the Henri-Agarande school in Cayenne, Guyana, Révane Will, 31, is “annoyed” by the abstention rate (72.73% in the first constituency in the first round). “People need to speak out!”
In the Pacific, voters vote on Sunday, but with the time difference, they will start going to the polls on Saturday evening Paris time (8:00 p.m. for Wallis and Futuna and Polynesia – where the turnout at noon was 18.71% according to the High Commission, then 11 p.m. for Nouméa).
In the Indian Ocean, voters will vote on Sunday, with polling stations opening at 6 a.m. (Paris time) for Reunion and 7 a.m. for Mayotte.
– Redesign –
The ballot will determine which coalition, that of the outgoing presidential majority Together! or of the left Nupes, will be in pole position, even if the outgoing majority remains favorite according to the polling institutes.
The question is above all whether this majority will be absolute (289 deputies) or relative, determining Emmanuel Macron’s ability to implement his reforms.
In the first round, the outgoing majority Together! (LREM, MoDem, Agir and Horizons) arrived neck and neck around 26% of the votes with the left alliance (LFI, PS, EELV and PCF). Marine Le Pen’s RN totaled 18.7%, ahead of Les Républicains and its UDI allies (11.3%).
Voters will also say whether Les Républicains, who collapsed in the presidential election, are still able to weigh in the Assembly.
Finally, the ballot will also say whether the National Rally, which has reached the second round of the presidential election with Marine Le Pen, obtains a group, i.e. at least 15 deputies, which gives more resources and speaking time.
The future of several ministers is also at stake in these elections. Because in the event of failure in the legislative elections, the candidate minister will have to leave the government, as the executive reminded us before the ballot.
If Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne does not seem to be threatened in Calvados, Minister for Ecological Transition Amélie de Montchalin is in great danger in Essonne, as is the boss of En Marche and Minister of the Public Service Stanislas Guerini, or again the Minister Delegate for Europe Clément Beaune, both in Paris.
Be that as it may, a reshuffle is expected after the election, if only for the posts of state secretaries, which have not yet been filled.
– Abstention –
Back from Ukraine, President Emmanuel Macron pleaded for a “truly European France”, after accusing his opponents of Nupes of wanting to leave the EU, and called for a “solid majority”.
Elisabeth Borne castigated a Nupes project with “very negative consequences” on the economy, as well as the “lies” of Jean-Luc Mélenchon.
The leader of Nupes also asked for a “net” result in his favor otherwise “it will be a mess”.
Marine Le Pen for her part called on her voters to make Emmanuel Macron a “minority president”, while castigating “an extreme left which is the most sectarian, the most violent”.
Abstention and carry-over votes will be decisive.
Less than one in two voters had moved in the first round and the trend should be confirmed on Sunday.
