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WORLD NEWS Tuesday 9 May 2017

Act II for France’s Macron: getting the majority to govern

By SYLVIE CORBET Champs-Elysees Avenue in lism. Le Pen campaigned that both he and his move- increasingly accepted by
JOHN LEICESTER Paris, immediately helped for France to leave the ment marked a break with a growing swath of elec-
Associated Press lend a presidential air to the 28-nation European Union the status quo, Macron tors despite its history of
PARIS (AP) — Freshly elect- previously untested leader and drop the shared euro previously promised that anti-Semitism and racism.
ed to the French presi- The National Front has two
dency, Emmanuel Macron lawmakers in the outgoing
now faces an equally dif- parliament but hopes for
ficult Act II: securing the dozens in June.
parliamentary majority he Mainstream parties on the
needs to make good on left and right that were fro-
his campaign promises to zen out of Sunday’s runoff
lift France out of economic in a first for modern France,
gloom. also are regrouping, aiming
With legislative elections just to clip Macron’s wings and
five weeks away, the start- impose their political agen-
up political movement the da, via parliament, on his
39-year-old former invest- five-year term.
ment banker launched one Macron will name his prime
year ago on his meteoric minister next week, but
ride to become France’s could be forced to amend
youngest president lost no his choice if the legislative
time Monday in girding for elections don’t go to plan.
the crucial mid-June elec- The worst-case scenario
tion battle. for him would be a strong
Without a working major- parliamentary majority for
ity, Macron could quickly his opponents, dictating
become a lame-duck his choice of prime minister
president, unable to push and limiting his presidency.
through labor reforms and French President-elect Emmanuel Macron, left, and outgoing President Francois Hollande attend That fate befell conserva-
a ceremony to mark the end of World War II at the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, Monday, May 8, 2017.
other measures he prom- Macron defeated far-right leader Marine Le Pen handily in Sunday’s presidential vote, and now tive President Jacques Chi-
ised to the broadly disgrun- must pull together a majority for his year-old political movement by mid-June legislative elec- rac when the left secured a
tled electorate — shown tions. majority in legislative elec-
by a record result for his de- (Philippe Wojazer, Pool via AP) tions in 1997, saddling him
feated far-right opponent, with Socialist Prime Minister
Marine Le Pen, and a re- who fought and won his currency in favor of rein- half of its candidates will Lionel Jospin for the next
cord number of blank and first election. It was the first stating a new French franc. be new to elected politics. five years.
spoiled ballots in Sunday’s time Hollande and Ma- Yet to move into the presi- That means many of them Macron’s movement is
runoff vote. cron appeared together in dential Elysee Palace, Ma- may be burdened by the banking that voters, having
The transfer of power to public since August 2016. cron is already preparing handicap of being largely elected him, won’t want to
Macron will take place That was when Macron re- his first days in power. Sylvie unknown to voters in con- see his presidency hobbled
Sunday, outgoing Presi- signed as Hollande’s econ- Goulard, a French deputy stituencies they compete so quickly. But that is far
dent Francois Hollande omy minister to embark on to the European Parlia- for. from guaranteed. Many
announced. Macron is al- his risky presidential run as ment, said Macron would Split 50-50 between men voters backed him reluc-
ready looking the part. He an independent — a deci- make Berlin his first official and women, they’ll have tantly, simply to keep out
shed his breezier campaign sion received coldly by the visit, with perhaps a stop to Macron’s example for in- Le Pen’s extremism. Ma-
demeanor for a solemn, French leader at the time. see French troops stationed spiration: Contesting his first cron can’t count on their
more statesman-like look in On Monday, though, Hol- abroad as well. election, he handily beat loyalty.
his first appearances after lande gripped Macron’s Macron’s optimistically Le Pen with 66 percent of A protest Monday in Paris
his victory and again Mon- arm before the two men named “En Marche!” — Sunday’s vote and tore up against Macron’s planned
day, at a sober ceremony walked side by side. The “On the Move” — political France’s political map. reforms drew several thou-
with Hollande to commem- ceremony marked de- movement plans to field But Le Pen’s 34 percent — sand people. There were
orate Germany’s defeat in cades of peace in Western candidates for all 577 Na- a high in any national elec- brief clashes with police
World War II. Europe, something Macron tional Assembly seats. But tion for her far-right Nation- and several arrests.
The pomp of the ceremo- made a cornerstone of his it will be contesting its first al Front — confirms her par- “He needs to cool down,”
ny, at the imposing Arc de campaign against Le Pen’s ever election. As part of his ty as a formidable force, said Raphael Garine, a pro-
Triomphe at the top of the brand of nationalist popu- effort to convince voters its French-first nationalism testing student. q