Comment on Legal woes mar French far-right National Front's makeover bid as probe highlights dark past

More than one billion people around the world have already voted in 2024—and there are many elections still to go in this history-making year. Polls for national office have been—or will be—held in more than 60 countries (as well as the European Union), home to nearly half the people on earth. [Click here for a previous version of this story that outlines 2024 elections by population and includes a “freedom and fairness score” for each country.] [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] And so far, a tsunami of change is sweeping ballot boxes worldwide. But the tides are turning in different directions: elections in Europe have seen far-right parties make serious gains; meanwhile, South Korea’s main liberal opposition to the ruling conservative government earned a landslide victory in parliamentary elections, and Senegal’s delayed presidential vote was hailed by observers as a win for democracy after it elevated a relative outsider and anti-corruption candidate, bringing a surprise end to the decades-long domination of the country’s ruling coalition. What’s clear is that people don’t want things to stay the same.

PARIS — France’s high-stakes legislative elections propelled the far-right National Rally to a strong but not decisive lead in the first-round vote Sunday, polling agencies’ projected, dealing another slap to centrist President Emmanuel Macron after his risky decision to call voters back to the polls for the second time in three weeks. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] French polling agencies indicated that Macron’s grouping of centrist parties could finish a distant third in the first-round ballot.

WASHINGTON — U. S., European and Arab mediators are pressing to keep stepped-up cross-border attacks between Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah militants from spiraling into a wider Middle East war that the world has feared for months. Hopes are lagging for a cease-fire in Israel’s conflict with Hamas in Gaza that would calm attacks by Hezbollah and other Iranian-allied militias.

A new portrait of King Charles III has been unveiled in honor of Armed Forces Day on Saturday, June 29, in the U. K. The portrait, a photograph taken by Hugo Burnand in Windsor Castle in November 2023, shows the King in full military regalia, composed of various medals, swords and decorations—a tribute to service members in both his ceremonial position of Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Services, and his position as Field Marshal, the highest rank in the British Army. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] The holiday commemorates the service of men and women in the British Armed Forces, falling on the final Saturday of June.

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