June 9 was the worst moment of French President Emmanuel Macron’s political career. Or so many thought. His political grouping, Renew Europe, was dealt a devastating result at the polls. And even worse—Marine Le Pen, his political rival and head of the far-right National Rally, came out the winner. French voters gave Le Pen’s party more than 31 percent of the vote; Macron’s, meanwhile, scraped by with less than 14 percent. The entire affair was a humbling experience for Macron, a guy who hasn’t really done anything but win since he was elevated to the French presidency in 2017.
The European Parliament elections, however, were a low-stakes affair compared to the first round of French legislative elections that took place over the weekend. If Macron thought dissolving the French National Assembly immediately after the EU elections and daring French voters to bring the far-right into power would scare them straight, it backfired in spectacular fashion. With a single decision, Macron exposed himself as everything his political opponents have claimed he is—arrogant, aloof, and grossly naïve about what ordinary French want.
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