Far right National Front party poised for electoral breakthrough in France
France's Socialist government faces voters wrath in local elections that see the far right gain control of key towns
France on Sunday held a second round of voting in local elections that are set to result in a breakthrough by the far right and trigger a reshuffle of the beleaguered Socialist government.
With his party facing a drubbing in the first electoral test since his 2012 election, President Francois Hollande is expected to react by ordering a shake-up of his government where popular Interior Minister Manuel Valls is tipped to replace current Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault.
The elections will make history with an all-female contest in Paris guaranteeing that a woman will become mayor of the French capital for the first time.
It also looked set to be a landmark vote for the far-right National Front (FN), which is poised to claim a small but significant foothold in France’s local government by winning control of as many as a dozen mid-sized towns.
The first indicative results were expected when ballots in metropolitan France close at 8pm local time. Indications at midday were that turnout would be low by French standards, increasing the likelihood of the Socialists suffering heavy losses.
That was not good news for Anne Hidalgo, the Socialist candidate for mayor of Paris, as she battled to resist the national swing against her party.
