French police launched tear gas at protests across the nation

French police across the country have launched tear gas at furious activists protesting the far-Right's massive gains in the European Union elections over the weekend. 

Marine Le Pen's hardline National Rally party won a sweeping victory on Sunday night, taking home 32% of the vote during the election, the first time the continent has voted since 2019.

Macron's Renaissance party, meanwhile, took home a paltry 14.6% of the vote. In response, the French president dissolved France's parliament, the national assembly, and called a snap election. 

Violent protests broke out across the country overnight, and carried on throughout the day.

One video, taken in Strasbourg, showed police tossing tear gas canisters with their bare hands down a wide boulevard. Another, taken in the centre of Bordeaux, showed riot-gear equipped officers marching down a narrow street while firing tear gas at protesters.

In Paris, activists were seen thronging the city's Place de la République, a site that hosts a 31ft tall statue of Marianne, the personification of the French Republic. Many in Paris were seen holding signs in fervent protest against Le Pen and her 28-year-old protege and political 'wunderkind' Jordan Bardella.

One sign read: '[expletive] Jordan Bardella.' Another read: 'France is not Bardella.' With Bardella standing to her left, Le Pen last night appeared on stage to tell her supporters: 'We are ready to take power if the French show trust in us.'

Her statement came on a night where much of the rest of the bloc saw an equally dramatic swing to the Right, with major upsets being witnessed in Belgium, Germany and Austria. Despite this, European Commission chief Ursula von Der Leyen boldly proclaimed 'the centre is holding', but warned 'the world around us is in turmoil.'

The EU election, which has been held across the continent over the last three days, is the first since Brexit, the pandemic and Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

On top of these, many voters have been hit by the cost of living, have concerns about migration and the cost of the green transition and are disturbed by geopolitical tensions, including war in Ukraine, and hard and far-right parties have seized on this and offered the electorate an alternative.

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