France President Emmanuel Macron's party is on course for a landslide victory after Sunday's first round of voting for the National Assembly.

Projections showed Mr Macron's Republique en Marche party and its ally MoDem expected to win between 400 and 445 seats in the 577-member assembly in next Sunday's second round.

That would give Mr Macron one of the biggest parliamentary majorities for 60 years.

Prime Minister Edouard Philippe said: "France is back. For the past month, the president has shown confidence, willingness and daring in France and on the international stage."

Emmanuel Macron: Everything you need to know

He added the result will be a vindication of Mr Macron's "winning strategy".


Republique en March has already won 10 of 11 overseas constituencies that voted before the mainland.

The vote was marked by record low turnout of 49% - a reflection of the dominating position Mr Macron holds over opponents.

Image: Prime Minister Edouard Philippe casts his electronic vote at a polling station

Right-wing Republicans were trailing in second with a predicted 70-130 seats while Marine Le Pen's far-right National Front was expected to win between one and 10 seats.

The worst losses were for the Socialists of Mr Macron's predecessor, Francois Hollande, who are predicted to lose 200 seats.

Socialist party chief Jean-Christophe Cambadelis and failed presidential candidate Benoit Hamon both lost their seats.

Mr Cambadelis warned that parliament risked having "no real oversight powers and no democratic debate worth speaking of".

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Final results released on Monday showed Mr Macron's party and MoDem winning 32.32% in the first round. The Republicans had 21.56% and the Front National 13.20%.

Mr Macron, France's youngest-ever president at 39, has been praised after selecting a cabinet which covers the left-right political divide in France, and for his role in taking on US President Donald Trump on climate change.

If the projections are confirmed next week, he would have a strong mandate to push through reforms he promised during his campaign.