Projections: Left-wing alliance surprises to top French election

The left-wing New Popular Front (NFP) has pulled off a surprise and come out on top after the second round of the French parliamentary elections, with the far right falling to third place, broadcasters TF1 and France 2 predicted after polls closed on Sunday.

The NFP, a new alliance that has brought together Jean-Luc Mélenchon’s hard-left La France Insoumise (France Unbowed), the Socialist Party, the Communist Party, The Ecologists and several smaller left-leaning groups, is projected to gain 172-215 of the 577 seats in the lower house, or National Assembly.

President Emmanuel Macron's centrist alliance came second and is projected to win 150-180 seats, down from 245.

The far-right National Rally party, which came out on top after the first round, fell to third place, and is expected to take 120-152 seats.

If the projections are correct, no camp is likely to achieve an absolute majority of 289 seats.

National Rally suffered from a coordinated campaign by the second and third-placed groups in the first round, who did a deal in some 200 seats to put forward one candidate in the hopes of keeping the far-right candidate out.

What happens next is unclear for the time being. The result gives rise to various future scenarios. The left could try to gain support from the centre forces - either as a minority government with acquiescence or in a kind of grand coalition. In view of the opposing political orientations, however, it is not clear whether this could succeed.