France’s right-wing National Rally party on Sunday made considerable gains in the country’s first round of elections, putting the centrist President Emmanuel Macron and his supporters on edge. 

Early projections suggest that the National Rally, led by Marine Le Pen, stands a good chance of winning a majority in the lower house of parliament for the first time, with an estimated one-third of the first-round vote, nearly double their 18% in the first round in 2022.

French polling agencies indicated that Macron's grouping of centrist parties could finish a distant third in the first-round ballot. Their projections put Macron's camp behind both the National Rally and a new left-wing coalition of parties that joined forces to keep Le Pen''s anti-immigration party from potentially forming the most conservative government since World War II. 

Still, the election's ultimate outcome remains uncertain, and the decisive final vote will happen next Sunday, July 7. 

BOLIVIA'S PRESIDENT DENOUNCES ‘SELF-COUP’ ACCUSATIONS AS ‘LIES’ AS SUPPORTERS RALLY

Earlier this month, Macron dissolved parliament and called for a surprise vote after the National Rally clobbered his party in the European Parliament election. The move was seen as a risky gamble that French voters, complacent about the European election, would be motivated to back moderate forces to keep the National Rally out of power.

Many French voters are frustrated about inflation and other economic concerns, as well as the leadership of Macron, who is seen as arrogant and out of touch. Le Pen's anti-immigration National Rally party has tapped that discontent, notably via online platforms like TikTok, and led in pre-election opinion polls.

Voters in Paris had issues from immigration to the rising cost of living on their minds as the country has grown more divided between the right-wing and left-wing blocs, with a deeply unpopular and weakened president in the political center. 

Le Pen called on voters to give the National Rally an "absolute majority" in parliament. She said a National Rally majority would enable the right to form a new government with party President Jordan Bardella as prime minister to work on France's "recovery."

"Following historic victories for conservatives in the EU elections a few weeks ago, France today reaffirmed the drastic shift we are seeing in Europe away from the failed left-wing playbook in favor of a common-sense conservative agenda centered around lower taxes, a crackdown on illegal immigration, and support for freedom of speech," Matt Mowers, EU-US Forum founding board member and former State Department official, told Fox News Digital. "Today’s results serve as another major message to bureaucrats in Brussels – Europeans want conservative policies and leaders."

KENYAN POLICE CONFRONT PROTESTERS DAY AFTER PRESIDENT WITHDRAWS TAX INCREASE BILL

Turnout on Sunday stood at an unusually high 59% three hours before polls closed – 20 percentage points higher than turnout at the same time in the last first-round vote in 2022.

The first polling projections emerged after final polling stations closed. Early official results were expected later Sunday.

The second round of voting next Sunday will be more decisive, but questions will still remain about how Macron will share power with a prime minister who is hostile to most of his policies.

In the scenario of a National Rally victory, Macron would be expected to name the party’s president, 28-year-old Jordan Bardella, as prime minister in an awkward power-sharing system known as "cohabitation." While Macron has said he won't step down before his presidential term expires in 2027, cohabitation would weaken him at home and on the world stage.

The results of the first round will give a clear picture of voter sentiment, but not necessarily the overall makeup of the next National Assembly. Predictions are difficult because of the complicated voting system, and because parties will work between the rounds to make alliances in some constituencies or pull out of others.

Bardella, who has no governing experience, said he would use the powers of prime minister to stop Macron from continuing to supply long-range weapons to Ukraine for the war with Russia.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

JERUSALEM – The walls appear to be closing in on an official for the United Nations over allegations of antisemitism. The official, Francesca Albanese, the special rapporteur on the Palestinian territories, recently made news after criticizing the Jewish state for its successful June rescue of four hostages held by Hamas terrorists in the Gaza Strip.

Israel’s outgoing ambassador to the U.N., Gilad Erdan, told Fox News Digital, "Francesca Albanese is the very definition of a terror sympathizing antisemite. Her role at the U.N. is dedicated toward one goal: the destruction of the State of Israel. I’m not surprised that the secretary-general, who is motivated by hatred for Israel, is not doing anything about her justification of terror against Israelis."

"Enough is enough," U.N. Watch Executive Director Hillel Neuer told Fox News Digital. "Francesca Albanese must be removed from her position immediately. For far too long, Albanese has abused her U.N. mandate to spread Hamas propaganda. She is the first U.N. special rapporteur in history to be condemned by France, Germany and the U.S. for antisemitism."

NETANYAHU SPOKESWOMAN CALLS OUT UN SECRETARY-GENERAL FOR 'MIND-BOGGLING' REMARKS: 'THIS IS INSANITY'

He added, "It’s time for the U.S. and other democracies to take action to fire Francesca Albanese now. This can be done by the adoption by the Human Rights Council of a resolution. Until that happens, they need to condemn her strongly for spreading antisemitism and abusing her mandate by illegally engaging in overtly political and cynical lobbying activities."

Albanese’s June 8 post on X said of the rescue mission, "This is ‘humanitarian camouflage’ at another level. Israel has used hostages to legitimise (sic) killing, injuring, maiming, starving and traumatising (sic) Palestinians in Gaza. And while intensifying violence against Palestinians in the rest of the occupied territory and Israel. Israel could have freed all hostages, alive and intact, 8 months ago when the first ceasfire (sic) and hostage exchange was put on the table. Yet, Israel refused in order to continue to destroy Gaza and the Palestinians as a people. This is genocidal intent turned into action. Crystal clear."

Alex Gandler, deputy spokesperson for Israel's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, wrote on X about Albanese: "Your unwavering support of Hamas and Palestinian civilian kidnappers of civilians is truly a piece of grotesque art. Wrong side of History Lady."

In November, Fox News Digital reported that Albanese declared that Israel does not have a right to self-defense against Hamas.

When approached by Fox News Digital about Albanese’s remarks on X, a spokesperson for the U.S. State Department said, "We opposed the mandate of this special rapporteur, which we believe is not productive. And when it comes to the individual who holds that position, we can’t help but note a history of incendiary comments online and in her public statements. We continue to believe that this special rapporteur’s allegations of genocide are unfounded." 

A spokesman for the U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres, who has been accused of anti-Israel bias and pro-Hamas rhetoric and conduct by Israel’s outgoing ambassador, punted press queries about Albanese to the U.N.’s Human Rights Council. Guterres has denied that he is anti-Israel and favors Hamas over Israel.

His spokesman told Fox News Digital, "The secretary-general does not appoint, and cannot relieve from duties, the rapporteurs of our human rights system, who are independent and who report to the Human Rights Council. Please direct your questions to the HRC members."

In April, Fox News Digital revealed that a newsletter of the United Nations Division for Palestinian Rights’ NGO Action News provided information on how to protest against Israel in the U.S. on tax day.

ISRAEL WITHHOLDING VISAS FOR UN OFFICIALS AFTER HAMAS COMMENTS: 'TEACH THEM A LESSON'

Veteran watchdog organizations like U.N. Watch and others have long lambasted the organization, where meaningful accountability about its reported rampant antisemitism problem is largely non-existent. The U.S. and the EU designated Hamas a foreign terrorist organization, while the United Nations has not.

Pascal Sim, a spokesman for the HRC, told Fox News Digital, "The views of the United Nations Human Rights Council are expressed in the resolutions it adopts at each of its sessions. The special rapporteur is an independent expert appointed by the United Nations Human Rights Council. Her mandate is set out clearly under the terms of her appointment, which is to follow the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967, investigate human rights violations and report her findings to the Council and publicly."

A Human Rights Council spokeswoman told Fox News Digital that she had forwarded inquiries to the special rapporteur, and that "She would like you to get in touch."

Albanese has yet to respond to multiple Fox News Digital press queries sent via United Nations spokespeople and to her Georgetown University email address, where she has a position at the Walsh School of Foreign Service. Queries to Georgetown went unanswered.