Macron fights to save his parliamentary majority and reform agenda

French President Emmanuel Macron gestures as he walks with Touquet's mayor Daniel Fasquelle during the first round of French parliamentary elections, at a polling station in Le Touquet, France, June 12, 2022. Ludovic Marin/Pool via REUTERS

PARIS (Reuters) -President Emmanuel Macron could lose his outright majority in France's parliament and the ability to push through his economic reform agenda with a free hand after a strong showing by a new left-wing alliance in the first round of voting.

Macron's centrist alliance and the NUPES coalition led by the hardleft veteran Jean-Luc Melenchon each won 26% of the vote amid record abstentions on Sunday, though it is the June 19 second round alone that will determine the division of seats.