The first round of the presidential France elections ended on Sunday, with Emmanuel Macron and Marine Le Pen advancing to the final round. They will square off once more on April 24. (France)
“Make no mistake, nothing is decided,” he told the crowd.
He scored a clear first-round victory, but surveys indicate that the run-off will be much closer.
Ms. Le Pen urged all non-Macron voters to join her in “putting France back in order.”
According to 97 percent of the vote counting, Emmanuel Macron received 27.6 percent, Marine Le Pen received 23.41 percent, and Jean-Luc Melençon collected 21.95 percent of the vote.
The showdown begins on Monday after the two were victorious in Sunday’s first-round vote. Macron, a moderate, is visiting an economically disadvantaged district of northern France where most voters supported Le Pen, near her electoral stronghold of Henin-Beaumont.
Meanwhile, Le Pen’s National Rally officials will gather on Monday to plot tactics for the second round, slated for April 24. Le Pen summed up the impasse by stating that voters confront a “fundamental decision between two opposing views of the future.”
Emmanuel Macron said he wants to reach out to individuals who voted for the “extremes” to remain at home. Next week, Macron and Le Pen will debate on national television. He hopes to accomplish this by campaigning on his opponent’s home turf in the northern town of Denain on Monday. Le Pen received 41% of the vote, while Marcon received only 14%.
Macron spoke with locals in the area, many of whom were critical of his proposed pension changes, including raising the minimum retirement age from 62 to 65.
Anne-Lise Dufour-Tonini, the mayor of Denain, told reporters that she will vote for Macron “without hesitation” in the second round but will lobby him to accept more “leftist measures.”
Le Pen was rewarded on Sunday for her years-long effort to portray herself as more pragmatic and less extremist in her third quest to become France’s first female president. Macron has charged Le Pen with promoting a dangerous
platform of racist and destructive policies. On the issue of immigration, Le Pen seeks to restrict Muslim women’s right to cover their heads in public and limit Muslim immigration to a minimum.
In his speech on Sunday evening, Macron said that his idea would respect all religions and the freedom “to believe or not to believe.”
The rise in food and energy prices is central to Le Pen’s campaign, but Macron’s team claims she won’t be able to keep her pledges.
“Our focus is now on the project and the values,” said Senator Francois Patriat of Macron’s party. The strategy includes being “proud” of what has been accomplished over the last five years, displaying “a bit of humility,” and “most importantly, some fighting spirit,” he said.
Macron stated that he would “go in the field” in the coming days. Macron missed most of the political campaign before Sunday’s first round, focusing most of his time on diplomatic efforts over the Ukraine conflict.
Meanwhile, Le Pen’s supporters aim to capitalize on public outrage at Macron’s policies, favoring the wealthy.
“Now everything is conceivable,” Aurélien Lopez Liguori, a local councilor for Le Pen’s party in Sete, southern France, told The Associated Press. Compared to 2017, “Macron now has a record, a poor record.” He attributed Macron’s victory to Le Pen’s proximity to the French during the campaign.
On Monday, Louis Aliot, a Le Pen party heavyweight, told France Info that the party would aim to “talk directly to the French about their issues.” And how, if elected, Le Pen would lead the country.
Aliot accused Macron of inciting millions of French people to take to the streets during the yellow vest rallies over perceived economic injustices and closing public hospitals despite the COVID-19 pandemic.
“He will have to explain himself on several matters.” “Aliot stated.
Clément Beaune, France’s Minister of European Affairs, told the Associated Press that “we should not think it’s done.”
He stated that the conflict will be
“project versus project.”
Beaune noted Macron’s “pro-European” project, recalling that “Le Pen was advocating — must not forget it — to leave the euro (region), to dissolve Europe when Brexit and Frexit were hot” five years ago.
If elected, Le Pen has dropped previous threats to pull France out of the EU and forsake the euro. Still, several of her proposals violate EU laws, such as establishing a national border control.
The rise in food and energy prices is central to Le Pen’s campaign, but Macron’s team claims she won’t be able to keep her pledges.
If elected, Le Pen has dropped previous threats to pull France out of the EU and forsake the euro. Still, several of her proposals violate EU laws, such as establishing a national border control.
Published by: Raj Vaja
