French president Emmanuel Macron's plan to destabilize his own country - and with it the rest of Europe - came off like a charm, precisely what was expected, leaving the French government in chaos, without a clear majority for any party and chances for a coalition government to succeed slim.

After Marine Le Pen's conservative National Rally (RN) party took a decisive lead in the first round of elections on June 30, Macron's Ensemble party and the leftist New Popular Front joined forces to assure that the right would not have an outright majority in the national parliament by withdrawing more than 200 candidates in the second round, assuring that voters would swing to the left or center, which they did.

As polling closed on Sunday, July 7, the results showed a country completely divided.

Of 577 seats, NFP won 182 seats in the National Assembly. Macron's centrist Ensemble alliance, which trailed in a distant third in the first round, took 163 seats. And the RN and its allies, despite leading the first round, won 143 seats.

Leaders of France's left-wing and centrist parties acknowledged they made compromises to unite in an effort to keep the far-right National Rally party from taking power in France.

The coalition calls itself the New Popular Front, named after a similar coalition formed in the 1930s against the rise of fascism in France. It includes environmentalist parties, the French Socialists and Communists and the hard-left France Unbowed party.

Ahead of Sunday's vote, the leaders of the alliance's four main parties promised unwavering support for Ukraine. They also promised to reverse a law that raised the retirement age from 62 to 64, raise the minimum wage, adjust salaries and pensions with the inflation rate, and freeze food and energy prices to boost people's purchasing power.

These and other socialist-styled plans will be put to a vote in the upcoming assembly session, and there's sure to be heated debate over most of the provisions. Without any party holding a clear 289-seat majority, there will be deals and compromises from all sides if any legislation at all is to be passed.

To put it simply, the anti-establishment left socialists joined forces with the globalist left-of-centrists and pro-Islamic coalition. The country will likely descend into chaos with an uncertain future. Most of the left and centrist positions are opposed by fervent right-wing patriots who have been portrayed in the media as extremists. Selective removal of certain party candidates in the second round thwarted the will of large swaths of the public.

Jordan Bardella, hand-picked leader of the conservative National Rally, had been making plans to become Prime Minister after the successes in the first round, but those plans were spoiled in the second round as RN finds itself in third place with leftists and centrists aligned against them.

Also waiting in the wings is the leader of France Unbowed, Jean-Luc Melenchon, who was thought to be the likely prime minister after sitting PM, Gabriel Attal, was to have tendered his resignation on Sunday night. Just as abruptly, president Macron refused to allow it, asking Attal to remain at his post for the time being as matters in the Assembly are sorted out and new members seated.

Normally, the leader of the largest voting bloc would be appointed Prime Minister, but Macron seems determined to sew even deeper seeds of chaos by keeping Attal on the ledge.

Confounding matters even more are the huge wins by Le Pen's National Rally in last month's European Parliament elections, which trounced Macron's party and were the primary motivation for the French president to call for the snap elections.

There are massive rifts within France's political and societal structure. Even Macron's Ensemble party distrust both the left and the right. With little possibility to align on legislation, a condition of relative anarchy may soon emerge as leaders, as well as the general population, find very little common ground.

Conditions in France appear well-suited for a popular uprising or a confrontation between Islamic immigrants and natural-born French citizens. It is difficult to imagine any positive developments that will occur without violence.

Transfer of Power in Britain After Labour Routs Conservatives

by FR, Thursday, July 5, 7:25 am ET

As morning broke on the British Isles Friday, change was in the wind.

After 14 years as the ruling party, Conservatives, and their most recent leader, Rishi Sunac, are out, and Keir Starmer and Labour are in.

The official transfer of power took place this morning at Buckingham Palace, where Sunac tendered his resignation to King Charles and Starmer was asked to form a government. Upon acceptance, the Labour Party, on the heels of their resounding victory at the polls Thursday assumed power and Starmer became prime minister.

Results of the elections to the House of Commons were stunningly lopsided. Labour picked up 214 seats for an absolute majority of 412 of the 650 total. Conservatives lost 251 seats, their number drastically reduced to a mere 121 seats.

Liberal Democrats added 63 seats for 71 total. The Scottish National Party (SNP) was also devastated, losing 37 seats, their representation reduced to a mere nine members of Parliament. Sinn Fein stood pat at seven seats. Other parties, which include the Greens and Nigel Farage's Reform, added 11 seats for a total of 28.

Farage won his race in Clacton, an English seaside town, in Thursday's U.K. general election, becoming a member of the House for the first time.

Former Prime Minister, Liz Truss, lost her seat in South West Norfolk to Labour's Terry Jermy.

While the election results were substantial, voter turnout was decidedly not, with just 59.9% of eligible voters making it to the polls, underscoring the public's general distatse for centralized government, no matter who makes the rules.

Issues facing Labour and Prime Minister Starmer range from support for ongoing military conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East to restructuring public assistance programs, the health system, and addressing the country's crumbling infrastructure.

Next up on the international referendum is the second round of Parliamentary elections in France. The National Rally (RN) party took the better of all others in the first round, winning roughly a third of all seats, held this past Sunday, June 30. The second round, which will finalize the makeup of the French Parliament, will take place this Sunday, July 7.

After winning more than 190 seats in the first round, National Rally is still short of an absolute majority of 289 of the 577-seat National Assembly. Projections and predictions vary widely, but pollsters expect National Rally to win somewhere between 210 and 240 seats.

The left-wing coalition, the New Popular Front (NFP), is expected to have between 170 and 200 seats, while the centrist liberal democrats of President Emmanuel Macron may reach between 95 and 125 seats.

The centre-right Republicans (LR) could get between 25 and 45 parliamentary seats.

The concern among French voters is that with no party holding an outright majority, coalitions will form and possibly plunge the country into political chaos, which is nothing new to the French public.

As opposed to the low turnout in Enland, voters were enthusiastic in France, with more than two-thirds of eleigible voters casting ballots in the first round.

Vote Tallies Continue Overnight in Britain

by FR, Thursday, July 4, 8:25 pm ET

It's past midnight in the UK, and there's no official word on actual vote totals. Even mainstream media outlets, CNN and AP are slow-rolling.

According to exit polls, Labour scored a resounding win, with Rishi Sunak's conservatives soundly defeated.

Friday morning will be the next update, when official results are announced.

Poll Suggests Labour Party Romp in British Elections

by FR, Thursday, July 4, 5:25 pm ET

Just after voting ended in England, CNN posted that Labour was forecast to win 410 seats, while the Conservatives party falls to just 131 seats, according to the exit poll, a rejection of the ruling party by Britain's electorate that had been anticipated for months.

The exit poll was conducted by Ipsos for the BBC, ITV and Sky, and has historically been an accurate barometer of how the country has voted. Votes will be counted throughout the night, with Keir Starmer likely to replace Rishi Sunak as prime minister on Friday.

These are very, very early exit polls, the first available, but, if they turn out to be correct, England has done an about-face on all of the horribly bad policies of the conservatives and their leader, Rishi Sunac, will likely retire to a life of TV commentating or think tank policy projection.

Idleguy.com will have updates later this evening. Enjoy the 4th! Change is coming!

Brits Go to the Polls

by FR, Thursday, July 4, 2:15 pm ET

England's general election is taking place on the same day that America, back in 1776, declared its independence from Great Britain. Irony is best served very, very cold and distant.

As voters went to the polls there was an overwhelming sense that massive change was coming to the country, with Labour poised to establish itself as the leading party and its leader, Keir Starmer, about to take the reins of power as Prime Minister.

Unlike in the United States and many other countries, there is no time lag between the elections and actual control. If Starmer's Labour Party wins a majority, he will instantly become Prime Minister, taking control and becoming the official voice of the country probably early Friday morning.

Complete results from the election will be poster here as soon as they're made official.

Here is the breakdown of all 650 seats in the House of Commons prior to the July 4 general election.

326 seats needed for a majority.

Le Pen's National Rally Party Takes Lead In France

by FR, Sunday, June 30, 4:15 pm ET

Polls have closed in France as the electorate went to the polls Sunday to cast their ballots for 577 members of the National Assembly.

Prior to the actual casting of ballots, French voters, frustrated about inflation, economic concerns, and President Emmanuel Macron's leadership, which they view as arrogant and out-of-touch, gave Marine Le Pen's nationalist National Rally party the lead in all pre-election opinion polls. The New Popular Front, a coalition of left-leaning candidates, also poses a challenge to Macron and his centrist alliance, Together for the Republic.

Early exit polls showed that Marine Le Pen's far-right National Rally (RN) party won around 34% of the vote, which puts the party ahead of leftist and centrist rivals, including President Emmanuel Macron's Ensemble alliance, whose bloc won 20.5%- 23%.

The New Popular Front, a hastily assembled left-wing coalition, was projected to win around 29% of the vote, the exit polls showed.

AP earlier reported that absentee ballot requests were at least five times higher than in the 2022 elections.

The second round of voting will take place next Sunday, July 7. If a candidate received more than 50% of the vote in the June 30 round one, they would automatically win the seat in question.

In the case that no candidate in a district garners more than 50% support, the top two vote-getters plus anyone who won more than 12.5% of the votes would contend in the second round.

With results now pouring in, it appears the polls were correct. Marine LePen's National Rally (RN) party has captured a stunning 34% of the vote and has taken the lead in the parliamentary elections.

Jean-Luc Melenchon, who leads the left-wing New Popular Front alliance, said he would withdraw candidates who have placed third in the first round of the parliamentary election.

In response, head of the National Rally, Jordan Bardella, called the results "unprecedented" and criticised the far-left for creating an "existential crisis" in a speech following the exit polls. He feels that the left's views on immigration priorities and acceptance of Sharia law are opposed to traditional French values.

For their parts, Macron and Jean-Luc Melenchon are already plotting to upend RN's round one victory. Melenchon plans to withdraw any of his party's candidates who finished third in local elections so that Macron's Ensemble party would vie head-to-head with RN candidates. Macron has called for a broad democratic alliance to prevent the far right from an outright parliamentary majority.

Bardella is widely expected to become Prime Minister, putting him on a nearly equal footing with President Macron, who has insisted he will serve out his term, which ends in 2027.

Expectedly, leftist supporters are protesting in the streets of Paris and Lyon, chanting anti-fascist slogans as the conservatives have apparently changed the direction of French politics.

Should the results from the first round prove out, that would give the National Rally (RN) party 240-270 seats in the French parliament, just shy of a clear majority of 289, but this is only after the first round. The second round will produce more wins for RN and possibly an outright majority, previously thought to be impossible, given France's leftist, socialistic past.

Macron's Ensemble party has effectively been marginalized to the point of being irrelevant going forward. The implications for immigration, national standards, and support for the conflict in Ukraine are far-reaching and signal an about-face in global politics.

Elections in France and England Will Have Far-Reaching Consequences

While wars rage in Ukraine and the Middle East, Western powers are set up for changes in leadership that may have far-reaching effects.

The presidential election in the United States is obviously the most meaningful, but that isn't until November. Of critical importance right now are parliamentary elections in France and England, called by the French president, Emmanuel Macron, and the British Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, who has only been in that position since October 25, 2022 - less than two years.

The timing of these elections appear somewhat on the suspicious side. After all, why would leaders of G7 and NATO nations risk forfeiting their positions when they are in the midst of - and losing - a war against their sworn mortal enemy, Russia? It appears that the "winning at all costs (as long as those costs are Ukrainian)" narrative has worn thin on not only the populations of France and England, but also on the nerve of the respective leaders and calling snap elections seems like a way to exit gracefully without taking responsibility for their disastrous policies or even admitting that they have failed.

These cowardly leaders understand full well that if Donald Trump wins the presidential election in the U.S., the war in Ukraine will take on new, different directions and may very well end in defeat for NATO and the Western alliance, so, they're taking the easy way out.

In Macron's situation, no matter the outcome of the June 30 elections, he would still be president of France for nearly another three years, his term ending in May, 2027. While he's recently "vowed" to remain in office until his term is up, speculation abounds that he might step down if the right-leaning National Rally (RN) party of Maine Le Pen is able to garner enough seats to establish a clear leadership in France's legislature or form a coalition with the left, led by France Unbowed, and centrists, or other blocs unfriendly to Macron's policies, chichis just about all of them.

For Sunak, the British elections are more meaningful and probably career-changing. The chances are good that he will lose his seat in the House of Commons to Labour candidate Tom Wilson, and his leadership role to Labour's ineffectual Keir Starmer, and the emergence of firebrand Nigel Farage on the right and George Galloway on the left signals a veritable earthquake in British politics when elections are run on July 4. One way or another, it appears Rishi Sunak and the Tories are headed for the political trash heap of British history, a place that is becoming increasingly overcrowded with short-lived, failed, so-called conservatives and reformers like Boris Johnson and Liz Truss, who is also fighting for her political life in her district.

Rishi appears to be a goner, likely to show up at a think tank, editorial or EU standards board, or commentating on the BBC. He's become simply falderal and nothing more.

What happens after the elections and the official inaugurations of new legislators is fairly straightforward. Anti-Russian forces will be pushed back, and maybe, aside, in favor of ending the 2 1/2 year-long Ukraine fiasco that the U.S., U.K., and E.U. plotted and planned since 2014 and before. The killing of possibly more than a million Russian and Ukrainian soldiers combined, for essentially nothing, will go down in history as one of the most ill-conceived plots to overthrow a government - Russia - in the history of failed, aggressive, outside military endeavors.

France and England's elections may produce some long political coattails, to which Donald Trump can attach his campaign for a second term of office. Should conservatives - if there are any real ones remaining in either country - in the two European powers reflect the will of the people for a change, it would give Trump added momentum heading into November, which, matter-of-factly, is only four months hence.

That's why these elections are so very important, not just to citizens of France and England, but to people everywhere who desire peace over conflict, diplomacy over military aggression, and common sense over destructive narratives and media propaganda.

They bear watching closely as the stakes are very high, but the sense coming from the chicken-hearted leaders, Sunak and Macron, are that they want to be out of the way of recrimination and repercussions from U.S.-led policy that has led to disturbingly nasty results.

Idleguy.com will update election results and post-election maneuvering as time and events warrant, here, on this page and also in the August, September, October and November issues of IdleGuy.com.

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