France election 2024: Voters head to polls in first round of snap parliamentary elections called by Macron - when will result be declared?

French President Emmanuel Macron called a surprise vote after his centrist alliance was beaten in the European elections by Marine Le Pen's far-right National Rally earlier this month. France has a semi-presidential system, which means it has both a president and a prime minister.

The voting taking place today (Sunday 30 June) will determine who is prime minister but not president, with Mr Macron already set on remaining in his role until the end of his term in 2027.

Voting began at 8am (7am UK time), closing at 4pm in smaller towns and 6pm in bigger cities. A winner may be apparent on Sunday night.

If Ms Le Pen's party wins an absolute majority, France would have a government and president from opposing political camps for only the fourth time in post-war history. Following Sunday’s first-round vote, Macron is planning to convene a government meeting to decide the further course of action, government sources told AFP. In the lead-up to Sunday’s first round vote, Macron sought to hammer home this point, warning that France risks being plunged into a “civil war” if either of his “extreme” opponents win a majority.

How does the election work?

There are 577 constituency contests, one for each seat in the National Assembly, which is the lower house of parliament. Candidates with an absolute majority of votes in their constituency are elected in the first round.

In most cases, no candidate meets this criteria and a second round is held, which will be next Sunday - 7 July - when the final outcome will be confirmed. To qualify for the run-off, candidates need first-round votes amounting to at least 12.5% of registered voters. The top scorer wins the second round.

The far-right National Rally, ahead in all pre-election opinion polls, hopes to win an absolute majority, or at least 289 out of the 577 seats.

The National Assembly, the lower house, is the more powerful of France’s two houses of parliament. It has the final say in the law-making process over the Senate, dominated by conservatives. Mr Macron has a presidential mandate until 2027, and has said he will not step down before the end of his term.