Politics

Voters expected to punish Macron’s party in municipal poll

By Luis Miguel Pascual

Paris, Jun 27 (efe-epa).- French President Emmanuel Macron’s party is expected to get punished on Sunday’s municipal elections, which will take place after being postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The first round of polls took place on 15 March registering a record low turnout and despite the improvement of the health situation in the country, many fear a repeat could be on the cards.

Less than half of the census cast its vote a day before the government enforced a nationwide lockdown ordering the home confinement of the population.

The second round of elections will unfold in a more optimistic climate with the country in de-escalation mode but amid the threat of a second Covid-19 wave and with the number of coronavirus deaths edging towards 30,000.

Critics have accused Macron of being reckless and sending mixed messages for insisting on going ahead with elections given the government continues to urge caution.

Masks, hand sanitizer, social distancing between voters and regular disinfection of polling stations will be the norm across 4,600 municipalities where no candidate obtained over half of the votes in the first round.

There will only be elections in 13 percent of cities, but they group 16 million voters, 38 percent of the total.

Everything points to gloomy results for Macron’s party with scant victories predicted.

Polls suggest La République En Marche! could hold on to Le Havre, the city in which Prime Minister Édouard Philippe is a candidate, who is also gambling his political future.

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