EU Elections: Europe's Right of Election Drama Capped by Macron Bombshell | BBC News

Jun 10, 2024 | Exit polls had begun to roll in at the end of European elections across the EU’s 27 countries, when President Emmanuel Macron delivered his bombshell moment in a televised address to a stunned French population. “I’ve decided to hand you back the choice of our parliamentary future with a vote. I am therefore dissolving the National Assembly,” he declared.

The National Rally party - led by Mr Macron's rivals Marine Le Pen and Jordan Bardella - was one of the big gains that Europe’s far-right parties had expected, and confirmation came with all the exit polls giving the party more than 30%, double that of Mr Macron’s centrist Renaissance.

But beyond France, the broader story of Europe's four-day vote marathon really belonged to the parties of the centre-right. They tightened their grip on the European Parliament, with victories in Germany and Spain, and significant advances in Hungary, against long-dominant Prime Minister Viktor Orbán.

The far-right did not enjoy as great a surge across Europe as many had predicted. In the Netherlands, Geert Wilders’ Freedom Party came second, while Austria’s party of the same name came out as winners, but only narrowly.