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Macron gambles on snap elections to halt Far-Right March
By Francesca Hangeior.
This screen shot shows France’s President Emmanuel Macron speaking during a televised address to the nation during which he announced he is dissolving the National Assembly, French Parliament lower house, and calls new general elections on June 30, in Paris on June 9, 2024. (Photo by Ludovic MARIN / AFP)
French President Emmanuel Macron has taken the biggest gamble of his political career by calling early legislative elections to combat the surge of the far right, with the outcome decisive for his political legacy.
France will go to the polls to vote for a new National Assembly on June 30, with a second round on July 7, Macron said in an address to the nation.
His stunning announcement came after EU election projections showed the far-right National Rally (RN) had scored more than double the votes of his centrist alliance in the French vote.
“The extreme gamble,” wrote Daily Liberation in the front-page headline of its Monday edition.
In his address to the nation, Macron noted that in total far-right parties in France had won almost 40 percent of the vote.
“It is a situation to which I cannot resign myself… I cannot act as if nothing had happened,” Macron added.
The presidential camp now just has three weeks to make up ground on the RN in a short but intense burst of campaigning before France hosts the Paris Olympics in July and August.
With turnout in the European elections projected in France at just over 52 per cent, Macron’s allies will be hoping to attract voters who stayed at home to block the far right.
In a best-case scenario for Macron, his centrist alliance would recover the absolute majority it lost in the 2022 legislative elections and give new impetus to the remaining three years of his presidential mandate.
The nightmare outcome for him would be the RN winning a majority. That would likely see its leader Jordan Bardella, a protege of three-time presidential candidate Marine Le Pen, become prime minister in an uncomfortable “cohabitation”.
A middle scenario, analysts say, would be an anti-extremism coalition between Macron’s centrists and the traditional right-wing Republicans or even left-wing Socialists.
Celine Bracq, director general of the Odoxa polling agency, described Macron’s announcement as a “poker move” at a time when there is a “strong desire on the part of the French to punish the president”.
“It’s something extremely risky,” she told AFP. “In all likelihood, the National Rally, in the wake of the European elections, could have a majority in the National Assembly and why not an absolute majority.”
Luc Rouban, political scientist at Sciences Po in Paris, said Macron wanted to “trap” the RN with his sudden election announcement, arguing the party would find trouble mustering quality candidates to challenge for the 577 seats in the National Assembly.
“I think Macron’s idea is to play on something with the right,” he added.
Speaking to AFP, ruling Renaissance party chief and Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne gave an indication of how the campaign could play out.
He said the party would not challenge outgoing MPs from the traditional left and right for their seats if they were prepared to “invest in a clear project” around the presidential majority.
Leaders of left-wing parties called on their camp to unite to face the RN challenge.
While the balance of power “has evolved”, Socialist party leader Olivier Faure called for “a gathering which allows us to have a project, which allows us to be heard by the French”, and Communist Party leader Fabien Roussel said the left should “work together on a pact for France”.
Across the political spectrum, Eric Zemmour, of the far-right Reconquete, called for “the broadest union of the right”.
Marion Marechal, who headed the party’s list in the EU elections, said she was “ready to meet in the coming days” with Le Pen, who is her aunt, Bardella and Republicans leader Eric Ciotti.
Mujtaba Rahman, managing director for Europe at Eurasia Group, said Macron had taken “a major gamble”.
“This is really him trying to seize the initiative,” he told AFP.
“There is a serious risk of cohabitation”, he added, referring to a situation in which a president and prime minister from opposing political parties have to find a way to run the country together.
“The most likely outcome is more fragmentation, more deadlock and chaos. A complete paralysis.”
Members of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) staged a peaceful protest on Tuesday at the office of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Dutse, Jigawa State.
They are demanding that INEC formally recognise the party’s national leadership led by David Mark.
The protest comes amid growing political tension in the state, as internal party disputes and defections intensify ahead of party primaries and the next general elections.
According to reports, the protesters marched to the INEC office in the state capital without incident and submitted a petition to the commission.
Speaking after the protest, the Jigawa ADC Youth Leader, Manniru Aminu, accused INEC of overstepping its authority and said the commission cannot determine legal disputes involving court rulings.
“INEC does not have the constitutional power to interpret court rulings. That responsibility lies with the judiciary,” he said.
The group also claimed that INEC is not acting neutrally in handling internal party issues, which they described as a threat to democratic fairness.
They insisted that the leadership of the ADC under David Mark remains the only legitimate and constitutionally recognised structure of the party.
The protesters demanded that INEC immediately restore the Mark-led leadership on its official records and website.
They also called for a public apology from the commission and urged that those responsible for the alleged bias be held accountable.
President Bola Tinubu has approved the appointment of Fatima Zuntu as the director-general and chief executive officer of the National Biosafety Management Agency (NBMA).
In a statement on Monday, Chris Ugwuegbulam, head of information and public relations at the office of the secretary to the government of the federation, said the appointment takes effect from April 16.
Ugwuegbulam said Zuntu will serve an initial term of four years, in line with section 5 of the National Biosafety Management Agency Act, 2015.
He said Zuntu is a public health professional and policy strategist with experience in implementing national programmes.
Ugwuegbulam said the president has tasked the new NBMA boss to deploy her expertise towards advancing the agency’s mandate.
Zuntu’s appointment comes amid ongoing scrutiny over leadership qualifications at the biosafety agency.
In December 2025, a non-governmental organisation filed a freedom of information (FOI) request seeking to verify the academic and professional credentials of Bello Bwari, the former NBMA director-general.
The group raised concerns that Bwari, a lawyer by training, may not have met the statutory requirements for the role, noting that section 5 of the NBMA Act stipulates that the agency’s head must possess at least a master’s degree in biological sciences or a related field.
The NGO’s request, submitted to the federal ministry of environment, asked the government to disclose documents relating to Bwari’s qualifications and the process leading to his appointment.
The organisation criticised the lack of transparency, warning that such issues could undermine public confidence in biosafety regulation and scientific governance in Nigeria.
The group said the outcome of the FOI request could set a precedent for accountability in regulatory agencies, particularly those overseeing public health, environmental protection, and biotechnology.
The Labour Party has released the list of chairmen and members of its electoral subcommittees ahead of its forthcoming nationwide congresses scheduled across the country.
In a statement issued on Tuesday and signed by the Senior Special Adviser on Media to the Interim National Chairman, Ken Asogwa, the party announced the constitution of the committees to oversee the conduct of ward, local government, and state congresses.
According to the party, the ward congresses are scheduled for Thursday, April 23, 2026, while local government congresses will be held on Friday, April 24, 2026. The state congresses are fixed for Saturday, April 25, 2026.
The subcommittees, which the party said are composed of “experienced and respected party members”, have been mandated to ensure smooth conduct of the exercises in their respective states.
The appointed chairmen are, “Hon. Iheanacho Obioma (Abia); Francis Kim (Adamawa); Ekong Philip Solomon (Akwa Ibom); Chief Tony Asuoha (Anambra); Malam Mustapha Adamu (Bauchi); Beredugo Ebimonyo (Bayelsa); Chief John A. A. Ochoga (Benue); Comrade Buratai (Borno); Urom P. Iyang (Cross River); Hon. Chuks Onitsha (Delta); Chief Mitchell Nwabueze (Ebonyi); Comrade Dr. Saliu Edogiawerie (Edo); Comrade Usman Mohammed (Niger); Owolabi Ezekiel (Ogun); Charles Afolabi (Ondo); Balogun Ibrahim (Osun); Babatunde Yusuf (Oyo); Fakorede Matthew (Ekiti); Dr. David Ogba (Enugu); Comrade Adoga S. Knaabayi (Gombe); Hon. Chinagorom Nwankpa (Imo); Comrade Mustapha Garba (Jigawa); Dr. Emmanuel Barau (Kaduna); Comrade Kabiru Said (Kano); Pastor Ishaku Izang (Plateau); Hon. Amaobi Ogah (Rivers); Professor Muhamuda Muhammad (Sokoto); Barrister Jesse Williams (Taraba); Mukhtar Hassan (Yobe); Haila Ayuba Baja (Zamfara); Comrade Ismail Bello (Katsina); Comrade Muh’d H. Birnin (Kebbi); Hon. Samuel Ajare (Kogi); Bodunde David Adebayo (Kwara); Chukwuemeka Ogbanna (Lagos); Comrade Dr. Muttaqa Yushau (Nasarawa); and Comrade Rose Uba-Anarah (Federal Capital Territory).”
In her message to the subcommittee members, the National Chairman of the party, Senator Nenadi Usman, urged them to discharge their duties with fairness, transparency, and integrity, stressing the importance of the party’s core values.
She said they must remain guided by the principles of “equal opportunity and social justice”, adding that the credibility of the party must be upheld throughout the congress process.
The party also reaffirmed that its National Convention will hold on Tuesday, 28th April 2026, in Umuahia, Abia State, expressing confidence that all arrangements are in place to ensure a smooth and hitch-free exercise.
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