Paris (AFP) - French President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday was set to lose his parliamentary majority after major election gains by a newly formed left-wing alliance and the far right, in a stunning blow to his hopes of major reform in his second term.
The run-off election was decisive for Macron's second-term agenda following his re-election in April, with the 44-year-old needing a majority to secure promised tax cuts and welfare reform and raise the retirement age.
His "Together" coalition was on course to be the biggest party in the next National Assembly, but with 200-260 seats it will be short of the 289 seats needed for a majority, according to a range of projections by five French polling firms.
If confirmed, the results would severely tarnish Macron's April presidential election victory when he defeated the far-right to be the first French president to win a second term in over two decades.
The new left-wing coalition NUPES under 70-year-old hard-left figurehead Jean-Luc Melenchon was on course to win 149-200 seats, according to projections.
The coalition, formed in May after the left splintered for April's presidential elections, brings together Socialists, the hard left, Communists and greens.
The left only had 60 seats in the outgoing parliament, meaning they could triple their representation.
Far-right leader Marine Le Pen's National Rally party was on track for huge gains after having only eight seats in the outgoing parliament.
It was due to send 60-102 MPs to the new parliament, according to the projections.
If Macron's alliance performs at the lower end of the projections, there could be a hung parliament and political paralysis in France, even raising the possibility of fresh elections to resolve the deadlock.
'Incredible breakthrough'
The results are "far from what we hoped", Budget Minister Gabriel Attal said on the TF1 channel."It is clear the French did not give us an overall majority."
Justice Minister Eric Dupond-Moretti told BFM television: "We're in first place but it's a first place that is obviously disappointing."
Clementine Autain, a close ally of Melenchon, described the result on France 2 television as an "incredible breakthrough" and "vindication" of Melenchon's strategy.
The head of Le Pen's party, Jordan Bardella, hailed its performance as a "tsumani".
Falling short of the majority will mean Macron will have to forge tricky partnerships with other parties on the right to pass legislation.
There could now potentially be weeks of political deadlock as the president seeks to reach out to new parties.
The most likely option would be an alliance with the Republicans (LR), the traditional party of the French right, which is on track to win 40-80 seats.
"We will work with all those who want to move the country forwards," government spokeswoman Olivia Gregoire told France 2.
The nightmare scenario for the president -- the left winning a majority and Melenchon heading the government -- appears to have been excluded.
Melenchon had promised a break from "30 years of neo-liberalism" -- meaning free-market capitalism -- and had pledged minimum wage and public spending hikes, as well as nationalisations.
Ministers at risk
The ruling party's campaign had been shadowed by growing concern over rising prices, while new Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne failed to make an impact in sometimes lacklustre campaigning.
In a sign of the concern, French television reports said Borne had gone to the Elysee to talk with Macron even before the projections were published.
The jobs of ministers standing for election were also on the line under a convention that they should resign if they fail to win seats.
In France's Caribbean island of Guadeloupe -- where the poll is held a day early -- Justine Benin was defeated by NUPES candidate Christian Baptiste Saturday, a loss that jeopardises her role in the government as Secretary of State for the Sea.
On the mainland, France's Europe Minister Clement Beaune and Environment Minister Amelie de Montchalin are facing tough challenges in their constituencies, with both likely to exit government if defeated.
Parliament speaker Richard Ferrand, a close ally of Macron, acknowledged defeat in the fight for his seat, while another close Macron ally, former interior minister Christophe Castaner, also looked to have lost.
Health Minister Brigitte Bourguignon was defeated by the far-right in the battle for her seat.
Before embarking a trip to Ukraine this week, Macron called on voters to hand his coalition a "solid majority", adding "nothing would be worse than adding French disorder to the world disorder".
