Il Nuovo Postiglione - France votes in crucial polls as far right eyes power

President Emmanuel Macron stunned the nation by calling snap polls after the far-right National Rally (RN) party's strong showing in European Parliament elections this month.

With Russia's war against Ukraine in its third year and energy and food prices much higher, support for the anti-immigration and eurosceptic party has surged despite Macron's pledges to prevent its ascent.

The two-round vote could put the far-right in power in France for the first time since the Nazi occupation in World War II.

Polling stations opened across mainland France at 8:00 am (0600 GMT) and will close 12 hours later, immediately followed by projections that usually predict the result with a degree of accuracy.

Many voters said they were concerned about the future.

"I don't recognise my country anymore," Roxane Lebrun, 40, said in the southwestern city of Bordeaux.

"We have to keep fighting for what we believe in and what we want for France."

Julien Martin, a 38-year-old architect, added: "These are not easy elections, the results are very uncertain, and the repercussions could be serious for society."

Macron and his wife Brigitte cast their ballots in Le Touquet in northern France.

On Monday, the French president plans to convene a government meeting to decide the next course of action, sources have told AFP.

Most polls show the RN party on course to win the largest number of seats in the National Assembly, parliament's lower house -- although it remains unclear if it will secure an outright majority.

Final opinion polls have given the RN between 35 percent and 37 percent of the vote -- against 27.5-29 percent for the left-wing New Popular Front alliance, and 20-21 percent for Macron's centrist camp.

If the RN obtains an absolute majority, party chief Jordan Bardella, Le Pen's 28-year-old protege with no governing experience, could become prime minister in a tense "cohabitation" with Macron.

Many analysts say that France is facing a hung Assembly, which could lead to deadlock and political instability.

- 'Fight against hatred' -

As of noon, turnout in mainland France stood at 25.90 percent, an increase from the 18.43 percent recorded in legislative elections in 2022.

The shape of the new parliament will become clear after the second round on July 7.

Voters in France's overseas territories had cast ballots earlier in the weekend.

Electors lined up to cast ballots in France's Pacific territory of New Caledonia, where tensions remain high following deadly riots there last month.

"It should be well attended, but I don't know if everyone will play along and come out to vote," said nurse Cassandre Cazaux.

Former president Nicolas Sarkozy, Greens party leader Marine Tondelier and former prime minister and Macron ally Edouard Philippe were among the first high-profile politicians to vote.

Philippe, the mayor of Le Havre in northern France who has made little effort to hide his ambitions for the presidency, was seen smiling and chatting to locals.

Macron's decision to call the snap vote plunged the country into political turmoil and sparked uncertainty in Europe's second-biggest economy.

The Paris stock exchange suffered its biggest monthly decline in two years in June, dropping by 6.4 percent, according to figures released on Friday.

In an editorial, French daily Le Monde said it was time to mobilise against the far right.

"Yielding any power to it means nothing less than taking the risk of seeing everything that has been built and conquered over more than two and a half centuries gradually being undone," it said.

More than 100,000 joined an LGBTQ Pride march in Paris on Saturday, with some carrying placards targeting the far right.

"I think it's even more important right now to fight against hatred in general, in all its forms," said 19-year-old student Themis Hallin-Mallet.

- Spike in hate speech -

Many have pointed to a spike in hate speech, intolerance and racism during the charged campaign. A video of two RN supporters verbally assaulting a black woman has gone viral in recent days.

Macron has deplored "racism or anti-Semitism".

Support for Macron's centrist camp appears to have collapsed, while left-wing parties put their bickering aside to form the New Popular Front, in a nod to an alliance founded in 1936 to combat fascism.

Analysts say Le Pen's years-long efforts to clean up the image of a party co-founded by a former Waffen SS member have been paying off.

The party has promised to bolster purchasing power, curb immigration and boost law and order.

T.Barbieri--INP