Image source, Reuters

While we wait to hear from the Élysée Palace on the resignation of the French Prime Minister, Gabriel Attal, the leaders of the left-wing New Popular Front (NFP) have told President Macron to ask them to name the country's next prime minister.

"It is the leading political grouping in the National Assembly that is to govern, so the President of the Republic has a duty to summon a prime minister from the new Popular Front to the Matignon [prime minister's residence]," says Manuel Bompard of the hard left France Unbowed party.

"According to institutional logic, Emmanuel Macron should today officially call on the Nouveau Front Populaire to give him the name of a prime minister. Will he do so? Or will he not?

"As this president is always full of surprises, we shall see," says Marine Tondelier, the Greens' secretary-general.

Earlier, Socialist Party leader Olivier Faure said that the winning coalition could choose a candidate for prime minister within the week.

French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal has arrived at President Emmanuel Macron's office to tender his resignation.

French media is reporting that it's unclear whether Macron will accept or refuse the resignation.

Attal had already flagged the move on Sunday - which follows French political tradition - saying he was prepared to stay in office longer as a caretaker but it was up to the president to decide.

French political journalist Salomé Saqué has told the BBC that France came close "to no longer being a democracy".

"This is not the end of the story", she says, "We came so close to falling into what could be an authoritarian regime. This is what was at stake, and still, 11m people voted for the far right, there were only 4m in 2022".

Saqué goes on to say that despite the left wing coalition beating the far right, France is not a left wing country at the moment.

"This is an explosion of votes which cannot be stopped overnight. I believe that the far right won an ideological battle, as National Rally is now a political party like the others."

She continues: "National Rally imposed it's themes. We talked about immigration, we talked about security. We talked about what the National Rally wanted to talk about in the public debate. This is a defeat to the president of the republic.

"If the government doesn't change the conditions that provoked the anger, I believe France will have a far right government in the next few years."

Azadeh Moshiri
Reporting from Paris

What happens the day after the party? The clean-up.

Both literally here at La place de la République - where we witnessed celebrations until the early morning, with people refusing to climb down this statue of France’s beloved Marianne, a symbol of liberty, equality and fraternity.

But also figuratively, where no single party swept up the votes.

All the parties that banded together to form the New Popular Front now have to decide how they can and want to govern.

That idea of fraternity will be put to the test.

Who could be the next prime minister?published at 09:49 British Summer Time 8 July

09:49 BST 8 July

Hugh Schofield
Paris correspondent

The New Popular Front (NFP) says it wants to put forward a candidate for the prime ministership by the end of the week.

By convention the president of France names a prime minister from the biggest parliamentary formation, and the NPF says it should be them.

Various names are being aired.

Jean-Luc Mélenchon – who heads the far-left France Unbowed party – is by far the best-known leader from the NFP. But he is a divisive figure, and if compromises with the centre end up being necessary he is not the man to make them.

Other possibilities are the leaders of other parties in the NPF:

• Marine Tondelier of the Ecologists
• Olivier Faure of the Socialists
• the Communist Fabien Roussel
• and Raphaël Glucksmann of the small party Place Publique, which performed well in the European election

The former president Francois Hollande, who was elected to the Assembly on Sunday, could play a key role in opening contacts with the centre – though he has said he does not want to be PM.

The difficulty is that all of these names signed up to the programme of the NPF when it was formed three weeks ago to block the far-right.

That programme includes overturning President Macron’s pension reforms, and wealth redistribution through tax rises for the better-off.

Will they be willing to drop those commitments as a condition for sharing power?

Nadia Ragozhina
Live page editor

Image source, Getty Images

Last night, Jean-Luc Mélenchon claimed victory for the left-wing coalition as many polls showed the New Popular Front (NFP) won the most seats - although it fell short of an absolute majority.

But who are the New Popular Front?

They are a left-wing alliance of Socialists, Greens, Communists and the France Unbowed party (LFI) formed after President Macron called a snap parliamentary election on 9 June.

These parties are a real broad church of opinion. They have previously criticised one another and have some key differences in their ideology and approach - they range from social democrats to hardcore anti-capitalists.

But they decided to form a bloc to keep the far right out of government.

However, the coalition doesn't have a majority, which means it's still not clear who will run France.

Much will depend on the balance of power within the NFP. Some moderate socialists could be tempted to peel off and join Macron's group to form a centre-left government.

If no working majority can be cobbled together, then President Macron can ask the largest party to lead a minority government. Alternatively, he could appoint a technocratic government but it is unlikely to survive for long.

Political instability could ensue, especially as the president cannot call a fresh parliamentary election for another year.

The German vice-chancellor has warned there are challenges ahead for France, Europe and the German-France relationship, after the results for Sunday's French election were announced.

Speaking to reporters on Monday, Robert Habeck welcomed the left's win over the far-right, but warned "we cannot say this went well and tick the check box yet," according to the Reuters news agency.

"We still need to pay close attention to what happens next in France," he says.

French stocks fell the most among its European peers early on Monday, Reuters news agency reports, as the prospect of a hung parliament brought France into uncharted political waters.

The pan-European STOXX 600 index also edged lower at the start of the trading day.Markets in Asia were the first to react to the shock French election results. The euro slipped 0.2% to $1.08 and long-term French bond futures also fell as trading there opened.

The left-wing NFP alliance won the most seats in the election, thwarting the advance of the far-right RN. But no party was able to achieve a majority.

Green candidate Charlotte Minvielle has been on the Today programme on Radio 4, calling the left wing coalition in France "a project of hope".

"We have avoided absolute disaster for France by putting aside the far right", Minvielle says.

"Our party leaders came together with great responsibility forming this alliance on a solid programme for social justice and environmental justice".

Mienville, who was not elected to the National Assembly, says it is really good news the coalition is placed first in "the possibility of forming a government to really try and change people's lives after several years of a Macron government, which has had an inhumane immigration bill and a pension reform bill which put a lot of people to one side".

"It's going to be a choice for people on the centre", she continues, "for people to decide to come together and be in favour of what we have been suggesting, which is all about trying to make society fairer and to increase the people's possibility of having a dignified life".

Image source, EPA

The left-wing New Popular Front (NFP) will choose a candidate for prime minister from within their winning coalition within the week, one of its members has said.

As we've been reporting, France is faced with a deadlock after no party or alliance secured a majority in the parliamentary election.

Socialist Party leader Olivier Faure's statement today addresses some questions on who will be in the running to be prime minister.

The NFP pulled off a surprise victory and left the far-right National Rally (RN) in third place, with President Emmanuel Macron's centrist Ensemble coming in second.

The current prime minister, Gabriel Attal, has said that he will resign today in a widely expected move.

The far-right National Rally (RN) had been tipped to win Sunday's election - so what do the party think went wrong?

Fabrice Leggeri, an RN member at the European Parliament, blames it on other parties "[allying] in order to block the National Rally".

Speaking to BBC Radio 4's Today programme, Leggeri says that the country is now "deadlocked" in the national assembly, which he says means it "looks like no prime minister can be assured to govern the country right now".

Asked if he thinks his party could benefit from the country being difficult to govern, he says "we cannot be happy that France will not prosper".

And on the future of his party, Leggeri says he believes "only National Rally can address" the concerns of citizens - which he says are related to the economy, security and migration.

"We know a majority of French citizens are waiting for our victory", he says.

Chris Bockman
Reporting from Toulouse

Image source, Getty Images

It would be a gross exaggeration to say the south-west region won it for the left coalition, but it certainly had a key role in preventing the far-right from getting a majority in parliament.

Traditionally this region has been a socialist stronghold, but in recent years the far-right has surged - especially in the countryside and smaller towns.

In the first round of the parliamentary elections the far-right was getting 35% of the vote.

Its difficult to tell why voters switched to the left in just one week, but in a region with hundreds of thousands of French citizens with Spanish and Italian origins, the far-right’s plan to ban people with dual citizenship from certain jobs might have had an influence.

In any case, last night I saw hundreds of young people in the centre of Toulouse celebrating the result.

The prefect for the region in charge of security also seemed relieved, telling me the city was calm.

One name you might recognise that is making a return to frontline politics is François Hollande.

He was Emmanuel Macron's predecessor as president, running the country from 2012 to 2017.

And on Sunday he was elected to parliament with the Socialist Party - part of the New Popular Front alliance, which won most votes in the second round of the election.

Addressing his supporters after the projected results were announced, Hollande said it "gives us both satisfaction and a responsibility".

"Thanks to the extraordinary mobilisation of the French people", he said "we were able to reduce the far-right not to the sidelines, but to a very small minority".

Image source, Reuters

Jamie Whitehead
Live reporter

Image source, EPA

If you're just waking up and joining us, the top line this morning is that France is facing a hung parliament after the far-right National Rally failed to win a majority in the parliamentary elections.

Its going to be a busy day in France, here's what we know we can expect:

• A full breakdown of the results is expected later. In the 577-seat French assembly, it looks like the left wing coalition is expected to have 182 seats, with Macron's Ensemble alliance taking 168 and the far-right National Rally and it's allies taking 143. We will bring you the final result when it comes in
• France's prime minister will be resigning. Last night Gabriel Attal announced he would stand down from his job today after Macron's alliance lost its majority. Attal will not be quitting immediately, saying he will stay on "as long as my duty requires". Don't forget - the French capital is due to host the Olympic games in just 18 days
• We should hear from Emmanuel Macron. We've not heard from the French president yet, but, the AFP news agency is reporting that one of his aides says he wants "prudence and analysis of the results"

Stay with us throughout the day for all the latest updates and analysis.

Nadia Ragozhina
Live page editor

Image source, Reuters

Let's take a step back and remind ourselves how we got here.

Snap election: Last month, President Macron dissolved parliament and called a snap election just an hour after his centrist Together alliance was trounced by the National Rally (RN) in European Parliament elections.

Macron's reasoning: The National Rally's success at that vote did not mean Macron had to call an election. At the time, Macron told voters: "I have heard your message. And I will not let it go without a response.

"France needs a clear majority in serenity and harmony," adding that he could not resign himself to the far-right's progress "everywhere in the continent".

Opinion polls: After its success at the European Parliament election, the far-right National Rally was widely expected to win France's snap election, doing well in many opinion polls - but it looks like they have been beaten into third place.

The New Popular Front, a left-wing coalition, is on course for victory after a highly charged and abbreviated election called only four weeks ago by Macron.

Hung parliament: Now it looks like France is heading for a hung parliament with no party having anything like a majority. These parliamentary elections don't affect Macron's own job, as they are separate from the presidential elections and his term as president still runs for three more years.

France is waking to uncharted political territory after Sunday’s parliamentary election left none of the three blocs with enough seats to govern outright.

A newly-fashioned left-wing coalition, the New Popular Front, took the most seats, with President Macron’s centrist alliance coming second. The two blocs which had agreed on a tactical voting pact, pushed the far-right National Rally into third place.

As we've been reporting, a number of candidates stood aside ahead of the second round in a bid to stop the National Rally winning more seats in the election - one of those is Noé Gauchard, from the New Popular Front group.

Speaking to BBC World Service's Newsday, Gauchard says his opponent - former prime minister Élisabeth Borne - "would never have won" if he didn't stand aside.

On hearing the results, Gauchard - whose coalition won the most seats in the second round of the election - says he "felt an immense joy".

"Anyone who cares about the rule of law and the human rights was able to breathe again after weeks of extreme anxiety", he says.

Asked about the future of the far-right in France, Gauchard says, "We cannot say today that we have stopped it...but we still can stop it by governing right".

Henri Astier
Live reporter

Image source, Reuters

Raphaël Glucksmann, a centre-left Euro-MP who is a rising star within the left-wing coalition, has said the election marks a power shift.

The president no longer determines policy and the Assembly is "now at the heart of power", he tells BFM TV.

Noting that the left-wing NFP alliance - which his Socialist Party has joined - does not command an absolute majority, he says opponents will have to come together and make deals, as they do elsewhere in Europe.

"We will have to talk, debate - and change our political culture," says Glucksmann, who calls for a "pacified democracy".

Image source, EPA

Let's hear some more of what French voters have been saying as they take to the streets to celebrate the left's shock victory or express their anger at the far right's defeat. The interviews were compiled by the French news agency AFP.

"I'm really happy, there's this crazy energy and I'm getting the chills," Marie Delille, a philosophy student, said at a gathering of the hard-left France Unbowed party in Stalingrad Square in Paris.

"It's a victory, but it's a relative victory... so we have to continue to fight. It's not over... But it's a relief, that's for sure. We weren't expecting it," said Hugo Chevalley, a history student.

In the crowd, there was a placard with the words: "No to the [far-right] RN, no to [President] Macron".

Elsewhere in the city, Olivier Mondet, a 64-year-old nurse, expressed dismay at the turnout in favour of the left.

"They tell the French people any old thing and they swallow it all up. They're manipulating them," he said.

Cecilia Djennad, 32, said she was not about to give up even if some people have been demonising the far right for years.

History student Noah Ludon was also optimistic. "The RN is a high-speed train," he said. "Our voters are increasing."

Patrick Jackson
Live page editor

Image source, Reuters

It's just gone 06:30 in Paris. Hello and welcome to our live coverage of the French parliamentary election outcome, which has taken the politics of the EU's second-biggest economy, a key member of the Nato alliance, into new territory.

Many people were bracing for a shock breakthrough for the far right but in the event it was a coalition of the left that surged ahead of both the right and President Emmanuel Macron's centrists.

The New Popular Front looks certain to have 182 seats in the 577-seat National Assembly, with 168 for Macron's Ensemble alliance, 143 for the far-right National Rally and its allies, and 60 for the conservative Republicans. That spells a hung parliament.

All eyes will be on Macron who called this snap election and has still to issue his response to the new political realities.

Stay with us through the day as our reporters bring you news updates, analysis and colour at this crucial moment for French and European politics.

Image source, AFP

More world leaders have been congratulating France's left on their shock victory over the far right.

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who has met Jean-Luc Mélenchon personally, posted on X that French politicians had united against "extremism".

He said this underscored the importance of dialogue among progressive forces, something South Americans could take inspiration from.

Former US Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders posted a congratulatory message for the French left on X for "taking on right-wing extremism and winning".

"Here’s a simple fact: If politicians stand with working families, working families will stand with you. As it turns out, lowering the retirement age and raising the minimum wage are very popular," he said.