French President Emmanuel Macron is seeking to free his government from the stranglehold of National Rally leader Marine Le Pen by piecing together a coalition of moderates that will last until 2027.
Macron will aim to avoid a new legislative election for more than two years, which is when his term ends, according to an official close to the president. That would defy most expectations for a fresh ballot as soon as July to break France’s political impasse.
The current disarray traces back to June, when Macron called a snap legislative election following a disastrous European ballot. That decision backfired, delivering a National Assembly split into three irreconcilable blocs — a leftist alliance, a smaller center backing Macron, and an expanded nationalist group led by Le Pen.
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