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Summary Socialists and leftist candidates won strong support in 1st round of France parliamentary elections.
French President Francois Hollandes Socialists and allies were headed for an absolute majority to push through tax-and-spend reforms after a first round of parliamentary elections Sunday, exit polls said.The election also saw a surge in support for Marine Le Pens National Front, which wants to ditch the euro and battles against the Islamisation of France. It won almost 14 percent of votes, according to the exit polls.The Socialist Party and its Green allies were set to win a total of around 40 percent of votes, according to the CSA polling institute, versus 35 percent for former president Nicolas Sarkozys UMP party.The Communist-backed Left Front headed by firebrand Jean-Luc Melenchon was on course to win seven percent of votes, CSA said, with turnout nationwide at around 60 percent.TNS Sofres, Ipsos and OpinonWay pollsters all agreed that the political left, including the Left Front, would win at least 289 seats in the 577-seat Assembly and possibly as many as 368 seats.
