France heading to polls in key elections

France (Sky News) - Voters have gone to the polls for the second time in France in crucial parliamentary run-off elections that threaten political deadlock.

While Marine Le Pen's far-right National Rally party is expected to win most votes, it faces falling short of a majority.

This raises the prospect of a hung parliament, denting the authority of President Emmanuel Macron.

If the National Rally did secure an absolute majority, the French leader could find himself forced into a difficult "cohabitation" with the country's first far-right government since the Second World War.

Ms Le Pen's party won the biggest vote share in the first round of France's parliamentary elections.

But her hopes of a majority in the National Assembly seem less certain after centrist and leftist parties joined forces in a bid to block the far-right.

Mr Macron called a surprise vote after his centrist alliance was soundly beaten in the European elections by the National Rally earlier this month.

France has a semi-presidential system, which means it has both a president and a prime minister.

The voting taking place on Sunday will determine who is prime minister but not president, with Mr Macron already set on remaining in his role until the end of his term in 2027.

If Ms Le Pen's party wins an absolute majority, France would have a government and president from opposing political camps for only the fourth time in post-war history.

Her protege 28-year-old Jordan Bardella would be prime minister if the party wins outright.

He has has enjoyed a spike in popularity, particularly among younger voters on TikTok, amid increasing discontent with Mr Macron.

There are 577 constituency contests, one for each seat in the National Assembly, which is the lower house of parliament.