Right-wing National Front triumphs in French regional elections

"We are without question the first party of France".

In regional elections, candidates can qualify for the second round if they receive 10 percent of registered voters in the first round.

"Rather than withdrawing, we need to confront them", said Jean-Pierre Masseret, despite finishing a distant third in the eastern Alsace-Champagne-Ardenne-Lorraine region. The French government's deficit-reduction promises have already fallen by the wayside as Hollande has said national security trumps European Union budget rules.

His popularity has been rising recently, but that has not translated into votes.

Taking second place was the center-right Republicans Party of former President Nicolas Sarkozy with 27.2 percent, and President Francois Hollande's Socialists came in third at 22.7 percent.

Marine Le Pen has now declared the National Front the country's top party after it scored the most votes nationally, scoring nearly 28 percent of the vote.

The vote is also an important test of FN support ahead of the 2017 presidential election.

Jean-Marie Le Pen, the co-founder and former leader of the party, celebrated the party's " historical" achievements in the elections Sunday by tweeting a video of Conservative party candidate Christian Estrosi wearing a skullcap and dancing with Jewish men.

Sunday's polls were held under tight security and under a state of emergency following the Paris attacks that killed 130 on November 13.

France's far-right National Front pulled off a historic win on Sun., topping the vote within the 1st spherical of regional elections. Sarkozy has refused any agreement with the Socialists to prevent the National Front from winning any of France's 13 regions.

Le Pen, who herself topped the poll as lead candidate in the Nord-Pas de Calais-Picardie region where the migrant crisis is symbolized by the migrant camps outside Calais, refrained from claiming victory.

If traditional parties refuse to join forces against them, analysts predict the FN could take all three regions in the second round on December 13.

Marion Maréchal-Le Pen, who is standing in the Provence-Alpes-Cote-d'Azur region for the FN, at the results on Sunday.

"We should not exaggerate the prospects for Marine Le Pen becoming president: despite its good scores, the Front National is not so far the choice number one for French voters".

The new regional authorities in France have broad powers over education, local transportation and economic development.

"I hope many French people will vote, especially after the terrorist attacks".

The FN's repeated linking of immigration with terrorism has also helped it climb in the polls since the gun and suicide bombing assaults in Paris.