President Macron has taken a gamble which no one was expecting - calling snap elections which one of his ministers warned could have the "most serious consequences" in modern French history.
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The mayor of Paris said she was "stunned" at the decision, just weeks before the city hosts the Olympic Games.
Newspaper headlines have been even starker - one called it 'a thunderbolt', while another described Mr Macron's move as 'a leap in the void'.
But could this prove to be a risk too far?
Our presenter and Europe editor Matt Frei explains.
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