Macron rejects Prime Minister Attal's resignation, asks him to stay

French President Emmanuel Macron is refusing to accept Prime Minister Gabriel Attal's resignation following the surprising outcome of the snap parliamentary elections in France, the Élysée Palace annnounced on Monday.

Macron has asked Attal to remain prime minister for the time being in order to ensure the country's stability, it said. Attal announced his resignation on Sunday evening after the preliminary results were announced.

Official results released by the Interior Ministry on Monday showed the French left-wing alliance New Popular Front (NFP) emerged as the surprise victor in Sunday's run-off election but it failed to win an absolute majority. The new alliance did not go into the elections with a lead candidate.

Macron's centrist Ensemble (Together) bloc came in second place. Marine Le Pen's far-right nationalist National Rally (RN), initially seen as the favourite after the first round of voting, came third.

None of the groups achieved an absolute majority, making the formation of a government difficult.