Dramatic French Presidential Election

This means Ms. Le Pen still has hope of winning. Other polling firms predicted a slightly larger margin, with 54% voting for the owner of the Élysée Palace. Even so, this number is still much lower than in 2017, when Mr. Macron defeated Le Pen with 66.1% of the vote.

“It’s not over yet. The battle we launch in the next 15 days will decide the future of France and Europe,” said President Macron, calling on all voters to support him in the second round. , scheduled to take place on April 24

The cautious statement was made by President Macron not long after the preliminary results of the first round of voting (April 10) showed that he and Ms. Le Pen qualified for the second round, winning respectively. 27.41% and 24.03% of the votes.

According to observers, President Macron will have to work hard to win back the support of voters who have turned away from his “rigid” leadership style, especially when Ms. Le Pen is gaining support in the family. boosted by an election campaign that focused on issues related to the cost of living.

Preliminary results of the first round of voting on April 10 show that President Emmanuel Macron has the upper hand over rival Marine Le Pen Photo: REUTERS

French political commentator Pierre Huski said Ms Le Pen may be disappointed with the results of the above-mentioned surveys.

“The next two weeks will be quite difficult for Ms. Le Pen, because she has to argue directly with a debater like President Macron. Five years ago, she lost to Mr. Macron in a similar debate. ” – Mr. Huski confirmed to Al Jazeera radio.

According to observers, the results of the 2022 French presidential election will have worldwide influence because unlike Ms. Le Pen, Mr. Macron strongly supports the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

If President Macron is re-elected, France is likely to increase cooperation and investment in European security and defense. If Ms. Le Pen wins, Paris is likely to be tougher on immigration and less preoccupied with issues of priority to the US, like climate change.