A populist uprising in European Union parliamentary elections last weekend were trumpeted by "extreme right" groups, Jamie McCourt, the U.S. ambassador to France in the Trump administration, told Newsmax on Monday.
Political parties touting nationalist, anti-immigration, and anti-green agendas made big waves in France and across Europe, prompting French President Emmanuel Macron to dissolve his National Assembly and call for snap elections June 30.
"The extreme right really made itself heard," McCourt told "The Record With Greta Van Susteren," adding the French National Rally Party of Marine Le Pen, which reportedly claimed 31.5% of the vote Sunday, and the Reconquest Party of Le Pen's niece, Marion Maréchal, led the way.
"Certainly, Marine Le Pen's party gained a lot of seats and had a huge majority in that regard," McCourt said. "And her niece is in another party that's to the right of Marine Le Pen's party [and] got I don't know if it was 8% or something along those lines.
"When you add it all together, that's a real voice for the far right. Where it goes remains to be seen."
Reuters reported Monday that Le Pen's party is projected to carry the snap French elections but fall short of an absolute majority to unseat Macron. McCourt said it's unknown whether Le Pen can work with others who don't share her anti-immigration and nationalist agenda.
"People think she has become more moderate," McCourt said. "Whether she has or hasn't really, again, remains to be seen. Everyone's hoping she's more conservative than far right, and now it's a reflection in the party that her niece is in, which is even more extreme right than Marine Le Pen's party."
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Michael Katz ✉
Michael Katz is a Newsmax reporter with more than 30 years of experience reporting and editing on news, culture, and politics.
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