Le Pen’s Victory in France: Giving Russia something to celebrate

The French anti-immigrant, far-right-wing National Front party made huge gains in the first round of regional elections in France Sunday, the first elections held in the country since the terrorist attacks that killed 130 last month.

France’s far-right Front National (FN) party has emerged as the leader in regional elections in the wake of brutal attacks in the capital, Paris, three weeks ago.

The Socialist party has said that it would withdraw their candidates from the December 13 second round in two regions – in the north and in the southeast of France – where they came in third place, leaving right-wing Republicans candidates square off against those of the National Front.

Le Pen’s party is ahead in six of metropolitan France’s 13 departments after the first round vote, requiring some painful political decisions from the PS, which came third, and LR, which came second but failed to win the support it expected. But with this choice she indeed has become the national front – and the third major force in French politics along with conservatives and Socialists.

Both Mr Sarkozy’s party, The Republicans, and the FN appeared to be heading for about 30 per cent of votes, according to opinion polls.

It would be the first time the National Front has captured any of France’s regions.

Le Pen’s party also won more than 40 percent of the vote in the southeastern region of Provence-Alpes-Cote-d’Azur.

A second round of elections is scheduled for next Sunday.

Long content with attracting protest votes, the FN has changed strategy since Marine Le Pen took the party over from her father Jean-Marie in 2011, seeking to build a base of locally elected officials to target the top levels of power.

The arrival of hundreds of thousands of migrants in Europe and the exploits of ISIL, which has claimed responsibility for the Paris attacks, have bolstered the discourse of the National Front.

It is the last election before France votes for president in 2017, and a gauge of the country’s political direction. The National Front scored 49% there on Sunday.

Marine Le Pen says the rise of her party is due to a “people’s revolt” against the “political elite”. Pre-race polls suggested the party would win only two regions.

Voting took place amid tightened security.