Le Pen, Trump and liberal panic

I was at the French embassy in London on May 7, 2017, the night that Mr Emmanuel Macron won the presidency for the first time. When the screens flashed up news of his decisive victory over Ms Marine Le Pen, there were cheers from the assembled guests.

Seven years later, Ms Le Pen’s Rassemblement National (RN) has just

won the largest share of the vote in the first round of French legislative elections

and Mr Macron’s party has been trounced. Her protege, Mr Jordan Bardella, may soon become prime minister, and she is the bookies’ favourite for the presidency in 2027. The hope that Mr Macron had permanently buried the threat from the far right has turned out to be an illusion.