Although perceived as a political earthquake in France, the loss of an absolute majority by President Emmanuel Macron's party in the recent legislative elections is not an unusual development across Europe. With the exception of Greece, Cyprus, Malta, Portugal, Hungary and, outside the European Union, the United Kingdom, the governments of France's European partners are rarely dominated by a majority party. With two, three, five or even seven partners, unnatural or circumstantial, stable or fragile, coalitions are even becoming the norm in Europe.

Forced by the ballot box to find new ways of governing, the French government has joined an already crowded field. Like France today, some of its neighbors have had to compensate for the decline of the major traditional parties by seeking new governmental alliances, with varying degrees of success. Long months of negotiations are sometimes necessary to reach an agreement, and governments can falter on a single defection, as in Bulgaria in recent days.

In most countries, the electoral system is based on proportional representation and is one of the reasons that lead political parties to seek majorities of varying sizes. “There is almost nowhere in Europe where an absolute majority is possible," said Paul Maurice, a researcher at the Institut Français des Relations Internationales (IFRI) and member of the Comité d’Etudes des Relations Franco-Allemandes (CERFA). “In France, a coalition like Germany’s, for example, is no longer possible. In a way, Emmanuel Macron formed his own coalition in 2017, not with parties but with people from different parties."

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