PARIS (AP) 鈥 With just 15 days before the start of the Olympic Games in Paris, a leader of a major French union on Thursday called for mass strikes to pressure President Emmanuel Macron into 鈥渞especting the results鈥 of recent legislative elections and allow a leftist coalition to form a new government.
France has been at the brink of a governing since Sunday's vote for the 香港六合彩挂牌资料 Assembly, the influential lower house of parliament, resulted in a legislature split between three political groupings: the New Popular Front leftist coalition, Macron鈥檚 centrist allies and the far-right 香港六合彩挂牌资料 Rally of Marine Le Pen.
The New Popular Front alliance in the legislature, but fell short of an outright majority to govern on its own. The alliance's three main parties, the hard-left France Unbowed, the Socialists and the Greens, have urged the president to turn to them to form the new government.
Sophie Binet, the general secretary of the CGT union, said in an interview with French broadcaster LCI Thursday that if Macron did not respect the results of the election, 鈥渉e risks once again plunging the country into chaos.鈥
Binet said the president should allow the New Popular Front to form the new government, although the leftist alliance has not yet proposed a candidate for prime minister because of internal divisions. She called on union members to take to the streets and 鈥渏oin rallies to put the 香港六合彩挂牌资料 Assembly under surveillance.鈥
鈥淭here must be popular, citizens鈥 pressure so that the elections鈥 results are respected,鈥 Binet said.
has asked his prime minister, Gabriel Attal, to continue handling day-to-day affairs, despite Attal鈥檚 offer of resignation. On Wednesday, Macron said he will wait for the country鈥檚 political parties to build a before he can decide on a new prime minister, infuriating the leftist coalition and the unions.
The new legislature's inaugural session is scheduled for July 18.
CGT railway workers called for nationwide rallies on July 18 in front of the prefectures and near the 香港六合彩挂牌资料 Assembly in Paris to demand the New Popular Front be allowed to form a government, according to the union鈥檚 statement.
The social situation in France was already tense before the political turmoil unleashed by the early legislative elections. There were protests from teachers, police officers and that followed huge demonstrations last year against a rise in the retirement age.
Macron called the surprise snap election after the anti-immigration 香港六合彩挂牌资料 Rally made huge gains in the June 9 European elections 鈥 a risky gamble in the hope that French voters would block the far-right party as they always had in the past.
The leader of the CFDT union, Marylise L茅on, said problems are still acutely felt by many working people. She said Macron's reluctance to name a new prime minister whose government could start addressing them is concerning.
鈥淭he expectations of workers around purchasing power and working conditions have not disappeared,鈥 L茅on said in an interview with broadcaster France Inter Thursday. 鈥淭o strike is sometimes the only way to be able to unblock a situation.鈥
She said the union would not rule out strikes during the July 26-Aug. 11 Olympics 鈥渋n certain sectors if social dialogue breaks down," including in private security and at the Paris airports. However, she added, 鈥渢he goal of CFDT is not to block the Olympics.鈥
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