French left, Macron scramble to block far-right win

Candidates in France faced a deadline to register for the run-off round of a high-stakes parliamentary election, as President Emmanuel Macron 's centrist camp and a left-wing alliance scrambled to prevent the far right from taking power.

Mr Macron has called for a"broad" democratic coalition against the far right, with the political crisis overshadowing France's preparations for the Olympic Games this summer. The deadline to decide whether to stand down is 6pm this evening. According to a provisional count by AFP, more than 150 left-wing or centrist candidates have already dropped out.

The RN garnered 33% of the vote last Sunday, compared to 28% for the New Popular Front alliance and just over 20% for Mr Macron's camp. "Obviously I was disappointed to see the direction our country is taking with a big level of support for a party that is against our values of unity and respect, and that wants to divide the French people," said Kounde, the 25-year-old Barcelona defender.

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