Five key takeaways from France's first-round municipal elections

PARIS, March 16 - France held the first of two rounds of mayoral elections on Sunday, and although the results of local contests do not always offer a reliable preview of national elections, the vote provided a snapshot of the political mood on the ground. Read more at straitstimes.com.

PARIS, March 16 - France held the first of two rounds of mayoral elections on Sunday, and although the results of local contests do not always offer a reliable preview of national elections, the vote provided a snapshot of the political mood on the ground.

Here are five takeaways from the ballot, which precedes days of alliance-building that will dictate the eventual victors in next Sunday's runoff votes:

* NATIONAL RALLY SCORES IN STRONGHOLDS, HITS A CEILING ELSEWHERE

The far-right National Rally (RN) notched eye-catching wins in its southern and northern bastions, reclaiming Perpignan outright in the first round and finishing a strong second in Marseille.

Capturing Marseille, France's second-largest city, would mark a major breakthrough for the party.

But its first-round results also underscored the limits of the RN's appeal beyond its core territories. In major cities outside its Mediterranean heartland, the party barely registered, scoring under 8% in Paris, Lyon, Toulouse, Nantes, Strasbourg and Bordeaux.