Over 50 Attacks On Politicians, Activists Reported In French Election Campaign Before Historic Vote

More than 50 candidates and their supporters have been attacked ahead of a second round of voting in France's parliamentary elections. French Interior minister Gerald Darmanin said politicians from across the spectrum had faced verbal and physical abuse - often while they were putting up campaign posters.

Darmanin said his ministry has registered 51 verbal and physical attacks against candidates, their deputies or their supporters during campaigning for the high-stakes parliamentary elections  that end with the second round of voting on Sunday. Several attacks were “extremely serious,” Darmanin said in an interview with French broadcaster BFM on Friday.

At least 30 suspects “with extremely varied backgrounds” have been arrested, the interior minister said, adding that candidates and their supporters across France's political spectrum have been targets of verbal and physical abuse.

“National Rally's candidates were violently attacked … (as were) left-wing candidates,” Darmanin said.

He said 30,000 police officers will be deployed on Sunday, including 5,000 in the Paris region, to ensure that the results of the election “are respected whatever they may be.” He said gatherings outside of the National Assembly, the lower house of parliament, have been banned.

Tensions are high as left-wing and moderate groups try to prevent the anti-immigration, nationalist National Rally from winning an absolute legislative majority, which would be a first and a major historical shift for France.

Far-Right National Rally Leads Poll, Amid Fears Over Hate Speech

The National Rally, under party president Jordan Bardella, secured the most votes in the first round of the legislative elections on June 30 but not enough to claim an overall victory that would allow the formation of France's first far-right government since World War II.

A group called the Antifascist Action Paris-Suburbs called for a protest outside the National Assembly on Sunday night as results come in.

Many people have voiced concerns that the surge in voter support for the anti-immigrant National Rally has made people feel more comfortable using racist, xenophobic and antisemitic language in public.

The government agency tallying racist acts did not have recent data since the brief campaign began.

Candidates have complained of both hate speech and physical violence during the campaign.

Government spokesperson Prisca Thevenot, who is a candidate for the centrist Ensemble alliance led by President Emmanuel Macron, said she and a deputy and a party activist were putting up election posters in Meudon near Paris on Wednesday night when a group attacked them. 

Thevenot's deputy and the party activist were taken to a hospital.

President Emmanuel Macron called the surprise legislative election on June 9 after his alliance suffered a punishing defeat at the hands of the National Rally in French voting for the European Parliament, plunging the country into a sudden legislative campaign. 

(With AP Inputs)