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| France returns to polls to elect new parliament | |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| French voters are heading to the polls to pick their new MPs, a month after electing political outsider Emmanuel Macron as president. | |
| Mr Macron will be hoping the candidates for his centrist party, La Republique en Marche (Republic on the Move), will pick up the majority of the 577 seats. | |
| Opinion polls have suggested the party could end up with a landslide. | Opinion polls have suggested the party could end up with a landslide. |
| If correct, it will be a watershed moment for France, pushing the two established parties to the sidelines. | If correct, it will be a watershed moment for France, pushing the two established parties to the sidelines. |
| Both the centre-right Republicans and the Socialists failed to reach the presidential run-off last month, for the first time in France's post-war history. | Both the centre-right Republicans and the Socialists failed to reach the presidential run-off last month, for the first time in France's post-war history. |
| Polls opened at 06:00 GMT and close at 18:00, with the first projections expected shortly afterwards. | |
| Few MPs are expected to be elected in this first round of voting. | |
| Only candidates who win more than 50% of the vote will do so, otherwise all candidates who secure at least 12.5% will go into the second round next Sunday, where the winner takes the seat. | |
| Mr Macron's party, which was only established a little over a year ago, has fielded a selection of candidates from all walks of life - including students, the retired and a bullfighter. | Mr Macron's party, which was only established a little over a year ago, has fielded a selection of candidates from all walks of life - including students, the retired and a bullfighter. |
| LREM candidates have already won 10 out of the 11 seats voted for by French overseas constituencies and will be looking to make the same impact in the mainland. | |
| The new president has already left an impression around the world, in particular for standing up to US leader Donald Trump on issues like climate change. | The new president has already left an impression around the world, in particular for standing up to US leader Donald Trump on issues like climate change. |
| But the 39-year-old needs to gain a majority to push through the changes he has promised to reform France. | |
| Meanwhile, parties like Marine Le Pen's far-right National Front (FN) and Jean-Luc Mélenchon's far-left France Unbowed are hoping to capitalise on voters turning their back on the mainstream Republicans and Socialists. | Meanwhile, parties like Marine Le Pen's far-right National Front (FN) and Jean-Luc Mélenchon's far-left France Unbowed are hoping to capitalise on voters turning their back on the mainstream Republicans and Socialists. |
| However, the winner-takes-all-system tends to favour the big parties, analysts say. | |
| A number of the constituency races will be worth watching: | |
| The election is taking place amid heightened security after a series of devastating terror attacks in recent years. | The election is taking place amid heightened security after a series of devastating terror attacks in recent years. |
| Some 50,000 police officers will be on patrol on Sunday. | Some 50,000 police officers will be on patrol on Sunday. |