Macron eyes victory as France elects new parliament

French voters went back to the polls on Sunday for the first round of parliamentary elections that are predicted to give President Emmanuel Macron's centrist party a commanding majority.

Macron has enjoyed a political honeymoon since he beat far-right candidate Marine Le Pen to become France's youngest-ever president on May 7, naming a cabinet that straddles the left-right divide and making assured appearances in meetings with US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

But the 39-year-old president has done only half the job.

His Republique en Marche (Republic on the Move, REM) party, which he founded only 14 months ago, needs a clear majority in the National Assembly for him to push through the reforms he promised in his campaign.

A host of opinion polls show that Macron's untested party could take 30 per cent of the first-round vote, putting it on track to secure a landslide in next Sunday's second round.

The centre-right Republicans and the Socialists fear heavy losses after their candidates failed to reach the presidential run-off for the first time in France's postwar history.

Some predictions indicate the REM could win around 400 seats in the 577-seat chamber thanks to voters seeking to give the new president a strong mandate.

The party is already leading in 10 of the 11 French overseas constituencies, which held their first-round vote last weekend.

Macron, after shaking hands and posing for selfies with well-wishers, cast his ballot in the northern resort of Le Touquet where he and his 64-year-old wife Brigitte have a home. Few MPs are expected to be elected in the first round.

If no candidate wins over 50 per cent, the two top-placed contenders go into the second round — as does any candidate who garners at least 12.5 percent of registered voters.