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    Olympics Opening Ceremony Singer Redefines What It Means to Be French

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    Aya Nakamura, the French Malian singer, did more than open the Games. She redefined what it means to be French.A new France was consecrated Friday evening during the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games. When Aya Nakamura, a French Malian singer, came sashaying in a short fringed golden dress out of the august Académie Française, she redefined Frenchness.Adieu the stern edicts of the Académie, whose role has been to protect the French language from what one of its members once called “brainless Globish.” Bonjour to a France whose language is increasingly infused with expressions from its former African colonies that form the lyrical texture of Ms. Nakamura’s many blockbuster hits.France’s most popular singer at home and abroad gyrated as she strode forth over the Pont des Arts in her laced golden gladiator sandals. A Republican Guard band accompanied her slang-spiced lyrics. Her confidence bordered on insolence, as if to say, “This, too, is France.”Marine Le Pen, the far-right leader, had said that Ms. Nakamura sings in “who knows what” language. But her denunciation of the performance on the grounds that it would “humiliate” the French people failed to stop it.The backdrop to the ceremony was a political and cultural crisis in France broadly pitting tradition against modernity and an open view of society against a closed one. The country is politically deadlocked and culturally fractured, unable to form a new government or agree on what precisely Frenchness should be.In this context, the thrust of the ceremony, as conceived by its artistic director, Thomas Jolly, was to push the boundaries of what it means to be French in an attempt to bolster a more inclusive France and a less divided world. It was a political act wrapped in a pulsating show.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      Lo que pasó en Francia es asombroso

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      La extrema derecha estaba a las puertas del poder.En la primera vuelta de las votaciones del 30 de junio, la Agrupación Nacional de Marine Le Pen quedó primera con un 33 por ciento de apoyo, ganando más de la mitad de las elecciones locales. Con la previsión de que el partido se quedara a las puertas de la mayoría absoluta, Francia se sumió en un frenesí de especulación y ansiedad. El principal candidato de la Agrupación Nacional, Jordan Bardella, de 28 años, insistió en que solo aceptaría ser primer ministro si contaba con el apoyo del Parlamento. Según los sondeos, parecía bien situado para exigir un mandato.Pero la segunda vuelta del domingo demostró que estaba equivocado. Bardella no solo quedó muy lejos de la oficina del primer ministro, sino que su partido quedó tercero, con 143 escaños. Aunque el número de escaños aumentó respecto al anterior, que era 89, está muy lejos de las predicciones de hace unos días. La coalición del presidente Emmanuel Macron, que se había quedado rezagada durante toda la corta campaña, desbarató las expectativas al quedar segunda, con 168 puestos. La mayor sorpresa fue quién quedó primero. El Nuevo Frente Popular, de izquierda, una coalición de cuatro partidos formada apresuradamente antes de estas elecciones, se erigió en la mayor fuerza, con 182 escaños.Es un resultado realmente asombroso. Mediante un impresionante acto de responsabilidad colectiva, se ha frenado a la extrema derecha. Pero Francia no se ha arreglado de repente. Como ningún grupo ha obtenido más de un tercio de los 577 escaños de la Asamblea Nacional, se avecinan problemas. La extrema derecha, aunque escarmentada, se encuentra en una posición más fuerte que nunca, al mando de una coalición electoral creciente y decentemente situada para las elecciones presidenciales de 2027. Pero Francia, gracias a la colaboración pragmática entre partidos y a la resistencia entusiasta de los votantes, ha obtenido una brillante prórroga.La cooperación entre los adversarios de la Agrupación Nacional fue fundamental para el cambio. Tras la primera vuelta, más de 200 candidatos del Nuevo Frente Popular y de la coalición de Macron se retiraron, lo que permitió a otros candidatos presentarse sin problemas. En lo que la líder de Los Verdes, Marine Tondelier, llamó un “nuevo frente republicano”, haciendo un guiño a la tradición de los votantes franceses de unirse para frustrar a la extrema derecha, se pidió a los votantes que apoyaran a quien pudiera derrotar al candidato de la Agrupación Nacional.Los electores, sobre todo los simpatizantes de la izquierda, respondieron al llamado. Según un sondeo, en los duelos en los que los aliados de Macron o los conservadores se enfrentaron a la Agrupación Nacional, siete de cada diez votantes de izquierda se decantaron por el candidato anti-Le Pen, y la mayoría de los demás se abstuvieron. El frente no tuvo tan buen desempeño en los duelos entre la izquierda y el partido de Le Pen: aproximadamente la mitad de los partidarios de Macron apoyaron a la izquierda, y uno de cada seis votó por la extrema derecha. El resultado, sin embargo, fue contundente. Escaño tras escaño, la fuerte posición de la extrema derecha no fue suficiente para superar a sus oponentes combinados.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      Elecciones en Francia: 5 puntos clave de los resultados

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      Fue una jornada de sorpresas en el país europeo, con un inesperado triunfo de la izquierda, una extrema derecha muy por debajo de los pronósticos y la incógnita de quién será el próximo primer ministro.[Estamos en WhatsApp. Empieza a seguirnos ahora]De manera inesperada, los partidos de izquierda franceses se impusieron en las elecciones legislativas celebradas el domingo en todo el país, con lo que el partido nacionalista y antiinmigración Agrupación Nacional no obtuvo la mayoría en la cámara baja del Parlamento.Ningún partido, sin embargo, parecía con posibilidades de conseguir la mayoría absoluta, lo que deja a uno de los países más grandes de Europa encaminado a un marasmo político o a la inestabilidad.Los resultados, recopilados por The New York Times a partir de datos del Ministerio del Interior, confirman las proyecciones anteriores, según las cuales ningún partido o bloque obtendría la mayoría.Aquí presentamos cinco conclusiones de las elecciones.Gran sorpresa número 1Se produjeron dos grandes sorpresas en las elecciones anticipadas al Parlamento francés, ninguna de ellas prevista por expertos, encuestadoras o analistas.La mayor fue el triunfo de la izquierda: su coalición obtuvo 178 escaños y se convirtió en el principal bloque político del país. Fue la victoria más sorprendente de la izquierda francesa desde que François Mitterrand la sacó de la marginalidad de la posguerra, y ganó la presidencia como socialista en 1981.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      How the Far-Right National Rally Did in France’s Elections

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      Leaders of France’s far-right National Rally tried to put a brave face on projected results from parliamentary elections on Sunday that showed the party had failed to win the most seats, saying that they remained on a path to power despite a disappointing night.The National Rally, which had finished first in an initial round of balloting last week, was set to hold its most seats ever in the National Assembly, said the party’s president, Jordan Bardella. He denounced a political strategy by its centrist and left-wing rivals to withdraw candidates from hundreds of races to avoid splitting their support, saying they had “deprived” the country of a far-right government.Still, with almost all of the 577 National Assembly seats left to be called, the National Rally had amassed 142 seats, the most of any single party. It was also winning about 37 percent of the votes nationally, the most of any party.“This evening, an old world has fallen,” Mr. Bardella said. “Nothing can stop a people who have started to hope again.”Marine Le Pen, the party’s leader and the daughter of its founder, also sought to put the result in a wider context. “The tide is rising,” she said. “It didn’t rise high enough this time, but it’s still rising. And as a result, our victory, in reality, is only delayed.”The National Rally’s leaders argued that many of France’s problems stemmed from immigration and had campaigned on a plan for “national preference,” under which certain jobs, social benefits, schooling and health care would be reserved for citizens rather than immigrants.The New Popular Front coalition of four left-wing parties came together quickly last month in a bid to present a united front and keep the National Rally from winning a majority after President Emmanuel Macron called the snap election.Results in the western region of La Sarthe illustrated the challenge for National Rally supporters in overcoming a bitter defeat. The party had won a plurality of votes in four of five constituencies there last week, but fell short of the absolute majority required to avoid a runoff. In the second round of voting on Sunday, no National Rally candidate was elected for any of the five seats.“It’s a shame,” said Felix Aubry, a student and the campaign manager for one of the National Rally candidates, François Fèvre. “It’s crazy to see this massive shift in votes.” He described the recent alliance of left-wing parties as “unnatural” and tried to put a positive spin on the National Rally’s progress.“The National Rally has still made a very big breakthrough, so it’s still historic,” he said, adding, “When you see all the things that have been put in place to block it, it’s huge.” More

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      France’s New Popular Front Was Formed to Keep Far Right From Power

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      Even as vote counting was still underway across France on Sunday night, one thing was clear: The left-wing coalition called the New Popular Front did much better than expected and helped deny the far right a victory.Projections show the coalition coming out in front and gaining dozens of seats — a feat for an alliance that was forged only last month with the goal of keeping the far-right National Rally from power. The alliance includes four left-wing parties: Communists, Socialists, Greens and the far-left party, France Unbowed. While many in France cheered what appeared to be a loss for the far right, others were fearful of what the far left might bring.Last week, after the first vote in a two-round election, the coalition withdrew more than 130 of its candidates from three-way races in which the far right had a chance of winning — and pushed their supporters to vote strategically against far-right candidates.The strategy appeared to have worked.Despite the apparent win for the left, the polls showed that no party or alliance got an absolute majority that would make it the likely choice to form a government. Still, Jean-Luc Mélenchon, founder of France Unbowed, a pugnacious and divisive figure, quickly declared that his party was not willing to negotiate to form a coalition government. Instead, he demanded that the left-wing alliance be given the reins to govern so it could implement its “entire program.”We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      France’s Snap Election Enters Its Final Hours

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      The vote will determine the composition of France’s National Assembly, and the future of President Emmanuel Macron’s second term.Voters in France will cast ballots on Sunday in the final round of snap legislative elections. The results could force President Emmanuel Macron to govern alongside far-right opponents or usher in chronic political instability weeks before the Paris Summer Olympics.Mr. Macron called the elections for the 577-seat National Assembly, France’s lower and more prominent house of Parliament, last month in a risky gamble that appeared to have largely backfired after the first round of voting last week.Most polls close at 6 p.m. local time on Sunday, or as late as 8 p.m. in larger cities. Nationwide seat projections by polling institutes, based on preliminary results, are expected just after 8 p.m. Official results will come in throughout the night.Here is what to watch for.Will the far right win enough seats for an absolute majority?That will be the key question.The first round of voting was dominated by the nationalist, anti-immigration National Rally party. An alliance of left-wing parties called the New Popular Front came in a strong second, while Mr. Macron’s party and its allies came in third.Seventy-six seats were won outright — roughly half by the National Rally. But the rest went to runoffs.Over 300 districts were three-way races until over 200 candidates from left-wing parties and Mr. Macron’s centrist coalition pulled out to avoid splitting the vote and try to prevent the far right from winning.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      Why More French Youth Are Voting for the Far Right

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      Most young people in France usually don’t vote or they back the left. That is still true, but support has surged for the far right, whose openly racist past can feel to them like ancient history.In the 1980s, a French punk rock band coined a rallying cry against the country’s far right that retained its punch over decades. The chant, still shouted at protests by the left, is “La jeunesse emmerde le Front National,” which cannot be translated well without curse words, but essentially tells the far right to get lost.That crude battle cry is emblematic of what had been conventional wisdom not only in France, but also elsewhere — that young people often tilt left in their politics. Now, that notion has been challenged as increasing numbers of young people have joined swaths of the French electorate to support the National Rally, a party once deemed too extreme to govern.The results from Sunday’s parliamentary vote, the first of a two-part election, showed young people across the political spectrum coming out to cast ballots in much greater numbers than in previous years. A majority of them voted for the left. But one of the biggest jumps was in the estimated numbers of 18-to-24-year-olds who cast ballots for the National Rally, in an election that many say could reshape France.A quarter of the age group voted for the party, according to a recent poll by the Ifop polling institute, up from 12 percent just two years ago.There is no one reason for such a significant shift. The National Rally has tried to sanitize its image, kicking out overtly antisemitic people, for instance, who shared the deep-seated prejudice of the movement’s founder, Jean-Marie Le Pen. And the party’s anti-immigrant platform resonates for some who see what they consider uncontrolled migration as a problem.Young people at an anti-far-right gathering in Paris after the results of the first round of the parliamentary elections. We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      France’s Far-Right National Rally Rebranded Itself. Here’s How.

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      Many long considered Marine Le Pen’s party too extreme to be anywhere close to power. Now, the party could win a parliamentary election — and fill the prime minister’s seat.For decades, the National Rally was the pariah of French politics — deemed so dangerous that politicians from other parties refused to engage with its members. How much that has changed became starkly apparent this month: The R.N., as the party is known by its initials in French, dominated the elections for the European Parliament, crushing President Emmanuel Macron’s party and winning a third of the votes in France. Mr. Macron soon called a surprise snap election for the powerful National Assembly, and polls suggest that the National Rally might be poised to win those, too.Jordan Bardella, the party’s president, is jockeying to become the country’s next prime minister — something that just 10 years ago would have been unthinkable. He is scheduled to face off against two adversaries, including Prime Minister Gabriel Attal, in a much-anticipated debate on Tuesday night.If his party manages a big win in the election, Mr. Bardella could become prime minister, name cabinet members and derail much of Mr. Macron’s domestic agenda. (Historically, the president still sets foreign and defense policy.)How did the National Rally evolve, rebranding itself so fully that it is now closer than ever to such a position of power?The National Rally’s founder was openly racist.Originally called the National Front, the party was founded in 1972 as the political arm of New Order, whose members believed democracy was doomed to fail. It included former Nazi soldiers, Vichy régime collaborators and former members of a terrorist organization that carried out attacks to prevent Algeria’s independence from French colonial rule.We are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More

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      France Warned by E.U. About ‘Excessive’ Deficit

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      The rebuke for breaking European Union rules that require strict financial discipline comes two weeks before French voters head to the polls for parliamentary elections.Add an entry to the list of troubles facing President Emmanuel Macron of France less than two weeks before pivotal legislative elections: potential financial penalties by the European Union for failure to rein in the nation’s ballooning deficit and debt.The reprimand, announced Wednesday in Brussels, highlighted France’s fragile finances at a moment of political turmoil, as the far right National Rally party, led by Marine Le Pen, and a left-wing coalition, the New Popular Front, appear increasingly positioned to form a new government that could weaken Mr. Macron’s grip on power.Mr. Macron threw French politics into disarray earlier this month by calling for snap parliamentary elections after his party was battered by the far right in European Parliament elections.The fiscal warning by E.U. authorities set the stage for a possible confrontation between Brussels and Paris. Both the National Rally and the New Popular Front have pledged to spend more on public services at a time when Mr. Macron is being forced to find deep budgetary cuts of up to 25 billion euros ($26.9 billion) this year to improve the nation’s finances. The opposition parties, however, are critical of E.U. institutions, and want to ease rather than tighten fiscal policy.France is in debt to the tune of around €3 trillion, or more than 110 percent of gross domestic product, and a deficit of €154 billion, representing 5.5 percent of economic output. The budget crunch comes after Mr. Macron spent heavily to support workers and businesses during pandemic lockdowns. His government also provided subsidies to help households cope with a jump in inflation after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which sent energy prices soaring.President Emmanuel Macron has called for snap parliamentary elections, throwing French politics into disarray.Hannah Mckay/ReutersWe are having trouble retrieving the article content.Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.Thank you for your patience while we verify access.Already a subscriber? Log in.Want all of The Times? Subscribe. More