Question: No agreement on a government majority in sight

Two days after France’s parliamentary elections, a deal on a governing majority remains elusive. There were sceptical voices today about possible cooperation between both the left-wing New Popular Front coalition and President Emmanuel Macron’s former government camp.

“You have to take responsibility, so vote for us,” left-wing populist Manuel Bompard told the Alliance of the Left deputies in Paris. Green MP Sandrine Rousseau also dismissed the possible alliance plans, saying: “I don’t want to be in a government with Macron supporters.”

The left coalition faces a difficult leadership issue.

The left-wing deputies met for the first time in the National Assembly in the morning. Although they agreed on a common platform and joint candidates before the elections, the elected representatives of the respective parties arrived at different times and took separate group photos.

The left-wing coalition wants to agree on a candidate for prime minister by the end of the week. “I am ready for that,” said Socialist leader Olivier Faure. But it wants to coordinate with the other parties involved. Apart from Faure, the left-wing populist Jean-Luc Mélenchon and Green Party leader Marine Tondellier are also being discussed. The government camp has been skeptical.

Since the early parliamentary elections, the political scene in France has been divided into three blocs whose programs appear incompatible: the New Popular Front, the centrist Macron government camp, and the right-wing populists of the National Rally party.