Macron’s bloc expected to win French parliament vote

PARIS (Reuters) – Forty-four percent of French people polled expect President Emmanuel Macron’s centrist bloc to win this month’s parliamentary election, according to an Ifop-Fiducial poll for Sud Radio, albeit amid a high abstention rate.

The poll, which surveyed 913 people from June 7-8, added 54% said they would abstain. Twenty-five percent expected the left-wing “Nupes” bloc to win the parliamentary election, while 22% expected the far-right Rassemblement National party to win.

The election takes place on June 12 and June 19.

Macron was re-elected as French president in April but he also needs a majority in the lower house of parliament to implement reforms aimed at strengthening the economy, such as proposed changes to pensions and cutting taxes.

(Reporting by Sudip Kar-Gupta; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)