Emmanuel Macron will face far-right rival Marine Le Pen in the second and final stages of France’s presidential election on April 24th, after defeating the other candidates in Sunday’s first round of voting.
With about 85 percent of the vote counted, opinion polls based on the results so far show that Macron won about 28 percent and Le Pen 23 percent of the vote in the first round, ahead of far-left candidate Jean-Luc Melanchon by about 21-22 percent.
The result of Sunday’s vote suggests that the 53-year-old Le Pen is closer than ever to gaining power for the far right in France and mimics the nationalist victories of Donald Trump in the United States and Brexit supporters in Britain six years ago.
You see a snapshot of interactive graphics. This is most likely due to the fact that you are offline or JavaScript is disabled in your browser.
You see a snapshot of interactive graphics. This is most likely due to the fact that you are offline or JavaScript is disabled in your browser.
Two polls conducted on Sunday, after the first round of voting, showed that Macron will have a hard time winning Le Pen in the runoff. In a poll of 1,500 people, Elabe found that Macron would win the runoff by 52% to 48, which is within the margin of error, while a poll by Ipsos among 2,000 people showed that he would win 54-46.
Le Pen is skeptical of the EU, said she would step down from NATO’s military command structure, and has been a fan of Russian Vladimir Putin in the past. If it wins, it will cause shockwaves in Europe and the world at a time when Russian forces are waging war on European soil in Ukraine.
Le Pen told his supporters that the final vote in two weeks would be to decide the fate of “society and even civilization” and that if it won, it would restore “the prosperity and greatness of the country.” She said she planned to be president of “all the French”.
While Le Pen mentioned the need to tackle immigration and restore law and order, Macron told his supporters that he was in favor of “progress and openness”. While trying to fight Islamist “separatism”, he rejected xenophobia and the idea of stopping Muslims and Jews from eating according to their religious restrictions.
“It’s not us,” he said. “Don’t be fooled. This competition is not over and the debate we will have in the next two weeks will be crucial for our country and for Europe. . . I want France rooted in a strong Europe.
Both Macron and Le Pen immediately began searching for the votes of the lost candidates. Macron pointed out and thanked each of the 10 candidates who failed to qualify from the first round, and told his supporters to show them respect.
Eric Zemor, the anti-immigration television polemicist who briefly overtook Le Pen after entering last year’s race, is expected to win 7 percent of the vote in the first round – and most of his supporters have told sociologists they will support Le Pen in the second. circle.
Sunday’s results highlighted the collapse of support for traditional parties on the left and right – the Socialists and the conservative Les Républicains, which among them secured all French presidents between 1958 and Macron’s victory in 2017 – and the rise of nationalist extremes.
Marin Le Pen thanked his supporters after the forecasts for the results of the first round appeared. The final vote will be to decide the fate of “society and even civilization,” she said. © Thomas Samson / AFP / Getty Images
The conservative candidate, Valerie Pecres, is expected to receive only 5 percent of the vote in the first round. Yannick Jado of the Greens also received 5 percent, and Anne Hidalgo, mayor of Paris and Socialist candidate, 2 percent.
Both Macron and Le Pen scored slightly better in the first round than in 2017, and it seems that the voters were late with both leading candidates.
Fighting his third presidential campaign, Le Pen has risen in opinion polls in recent weeks after focusing on worries about rising living costs as gasoline, diesel and other commodity prices soar following Russia’s attack on Ukraine. .
She said she would fight Islamists and immigration and ban women from wearing the veil in public, saying it was an “Islamist uniform”.
Liberal internationalist Macron – who is involved in intense negotiations between NATO, the G7 and the EU on sanctions against Russia and support for Ukraine – entered the campaign late and lost his lead in the early elections as he tried to persuade voters to give him Second place. a five-year term at the Elysee Palace.
Webinar for FT subscribers
Join FT correspondents and guests for questions and answers on Monday, April 11 at 17:00 British time for the outcome of the first round of voting in the French presidential election. Sign up for your free subscription ticket
Macron argues that Le Pen, as president, would pose a threat to France, the EU and the Western alliance, and criticizes her protectionist economic agenda as inconsistent and impossible to finance. His manifesto includes continuing reforms and cutting taxes to modernize the economy and attract foreign investment, while striving for full employment.
You see a snapshot of interactive graphics. This is most likely due to the fact that you are offline or JavaScript is disabled in your browser.
Data and graphs by Steve Bernard, Ollie Elliott and Martin Stebe
Add Comment