Five challenges for France’s new president

French President-elect Emmanuel Macron

Emmanuel Macron , who exit polls say won France ’ s presidential elections on Sunday, may have seen off the competition in the race for the Elysee Palace but will face daunting challenges when he takes office .
The 39- year -old must unite a deeply- divided country , roll back unemployment and try to nudge a fractious EU along the path of reform — but he first faces a battle to secure a governing majority in legislative elections due next month.
– Reunite France –
Macron , a pro -European centrist and former banker , takes over a divided country where nearly half of voters backed extremist candidates — critical of the EU , globalisation and “ elites ” — in the first round of the election .
The “ two Frances ” are divided geographically — one urban , more affluent and open to reform ; the other, concentrated in the northern rustbelt and in disadvantaged areas of the countryside . It was this latter France that voted for Macron ’ s far -right opponent , Marine Le Pen .
Macron knows that many voters backed him not out of conviction but simply to stop Le Pen taking power , and his support could evaporate at the parliamentary elections .
“ Will the Macron - Le Pen divide — which is a national, existential identity divide, not the usual left -right split — continue into the legislative election ? I tend to think so , ” said analyst Stephane Rozes of the CAP thinktank.
– The impossible majority ? –
Macron has promised to move beyond traditional left and right parties to create a new majority in the centre .
He launched his En Marche! ( On the Move ) party less than a year ago but managed to attract hundreds of thousands of supporters . He finished first in the first round of the election with a quarter of the vote. In the runoff against Le Pen , he notched up almost two -thirds of the vote, according to exit polls.
Now he must convert his extraordinary rise — unprecedented in recent French history — into a solid presence in the National Assembly.
After his success in the presidential race , Macron believes that the French people will give him another victory in parliamentary elections , which will take place on June 11 and 18.
But the traditional centre - right , whose candidate Francois Fillon crashed out in the first round amid a fake jobs scandal , hopes to strike back and force Macron into a coalition arrangement in parliament .
The far left , emboldened by the first -round success of candidate Jean-Luc Melenchon , who took an unexpectedly high 19. 6 percent , is also aiming for a strong showing .
– Labour law battle –
Macron has lamented France ’ s failure to solve its unemployment problem .
French joblessness runs at 10 percent, which compares with an average of 8. 0 percent across the EU and just 3. 9 percent in neighbouring Germany.
Like his predecessors , Macron will be judged above all on employment, and he has vowed to force through reform of France ’ s hidebound labour laws using executive orders during his first months in office .
This accelerated procedure , bypassing parliament , could mean a fiery start to his term as France ’ s highly activist unions would likely bring protests out onto the streets , as they did last year when Socialist Prime Minister Manuel Valls used the tactic .
Macron wants to cut unemployment to seven percent by 2022 by liberalising employment laws , cutting business rates and loosening restrictions in France ’ s 35- hour working week.
– Terror threat –
The killing of a policeman on the Champs- Elysees in central Paris just three days before the first -round vote was a sobering reminder of the terror threat hanging over France .
More than 230 people have been killed in jihadist attacks in France since January 2015, many carried out in the name of the Islamic State ( IS ) group .
“ IS is open about its desire to smash national cohesion by exacerbating tensions between Muslims and the rest of the population , ” said Marc Hecker of the French Institute of International Relations .
Hecker pointed to the dangers posed by hundreds of French IS fighters returning home from Syria and Iraq in the coming years.
With no previous experience in such matters , Macron has to move quickly to show he has a grip on these challenges and his role as military commander- in- chief .
General Jean- Paul Palomeros , who advised Macron , predicted that France ’ s military commitments in the Middle East and Africa would continue unchanged .
Macron has also said he wants to reinforce the EU ’ s external borders and has called for a major increase in resources for the Frontex agency .
– EU reform –
Macron sees a reinvigoration of the France -Germany alliance as crucial to relaunching the EU after the shocks of Brexit and the migrant crisis .
He plans to tour European capitals during his first months in charge to set out a “ five - year roadmap to give the eurozone a true budget and to create a Europe of 27 for the environment, industry and managing migration ” .
Vincenzo Scarpetta, analyst at Open Europe, warned Macron may be biting off more than he can chew .
“ Reforming the EU looks good on paper but Macron ’ s ideas are bold : he wants a budget for the eurozone and a eurozone minister. Is that really realistic , when it would require treaty changes ?” Scarpetta said .
Macron has also said he is determined to develop European defence by coordinating operations and industrial programmes in this area.