French voters began voting Sunday in the second round of general elections expected to hand President Francois Hollande’s Socialist party a clear parliamentary majority.

French voters began voting Sunday in the second round of general elections expected to hand President Francois Hollande's Socialist party a clear parliamentary majority.

Polling stations opened at 8:00 am (0600 GMT) and are to close at 8:00 pm (1800 GMT) in the main cities across France. Voters are to choose 541 deputies, 36 having already been elected in the first round vote on June 10.

Opinion polls released before the end of campaigning at midnight Friday showed Hollande's Socialists and their parliamentary allies on track to take control of France's lower house National Assembly.

Hollande, who defeated rightwinger Nicolas Sarkozy in May's presidential election, has urged voters to give him a majority as he seeks to steer France through Europe's debt crisis, rising unemployment and a faltering economy.