Macron is opinion polls favourite as France elects new president Sunday

[rooster59]

Macron is opinion polls favourite as France elects new president Sunday

By Ingrid Melander

 

Emmanuel Macron, head of the political movement En Marche !, or Onwards !, and candidate for the 2017 presidential election, is pictured through a window of his hotel during a campaign visit in Rodez, France, May 5, 2017. REUTERS/Regis Duvignau

 

PARIS (Reuters) - After a tumultuous election campaign filled with scandal and surprises, French voters will decide on Sunday whether a pro-European Union centrist or an anti-EU, anti-immigration far-rightist will lead them for the next five years.

 

Opinion polls indicate they will pick Emmanuel Macron, a 39-year-old ex-economy minister who wants to bridge the left-right divide, resisting an anti-establishment tide that has seen Britons vote to leave the EU and Americans choose Donald Trump as U.S. president.

 

But should an upset occur and National Front candidate Marine Le Pen win, the very future of the EU could be on the line.

 

Macron, who wants to deregulate the economy and deepen EU integration, has a 23-26 percentage point lead over Le Pen in the opinion polls.

 

Forecasts proved to be accurate for the presidential election's first round last month and markets have climbed in response to Macron's widening lead over his rival after a bitter debate on Wednesday.

 

In a campaign that has seen favourites drop out of the race one after the other, Le Pen, who wants to close borders, ditch the euro currency and clamp down on migration, is nevertheless closer to elected power than the far right has ever been in Western Europe since World War Two.

 

Even if opinion polls prove accurate and France elects its youngest president ever rather than its first female leader, Macron himself has said himself he expects no honeymoon period.

 

Abstention could be high and close to 60 percent of those who plan to vote for Macron say they will do so to stop Le Pen from being elected to lead the euro zone's second-largest economy rather than because they fully agree with the former banker-turned-politician.

 

"The expected victory...wouldn't be a blank cheque for Emmanuel Macron," Odoxa pollsters said in a note. "A huge majority will not be backing him wholeheartedly."

 

MORE ELECTIONS TO COME

 

Sunday's election will in any case far from spell the end of the battle between mainstream and more radical policies in France, with parliamentary elections next month equally crucial.

 

Once the presidential ballot is over, attention will immediately switch to whether the winner will be able to count on a parliamentary majority. The first poll on the parliamentary election, published this week, showed that was within reach for Macron.

 

Much will also depend on both the candidates' score on Sunday. Le Pen's niece, Marion Marechal-Le Pen, on Thursday told L'Opinion daily that a 40 percent score would already be "a huge victory" for the National Front.

 

Whoever wins will spell a new chapter in French politics after the major left-wing and right-wing parties -- the Socialist Party and The Republicans -- that have ruled France for decades both suffered humiliating defeats in the election's first round.

 

The campaign was hit by yet another surprise on Friday night just before the quiet period which forbids politicians from commenting started, as Macron's team said a massive hack had dumped emails, documents and campaign financing information online.

 

Some 67,000 polling stations will open at 8 a.m. and pollsters will publish initial estimates at 8 pm (1800 GMT), once all polling stations are closed.

 

More than 50,000 police officers will be on duty. Security will be a prime concern in the wake of a series of militant attacks in Paris, Nice and elsewhere in the past few years that have killed more than 230 people in the past two-and-a-half years.

 

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2017-05-07

[i claudius]

So the French people will vote for no change if they elect Macron , just a different face .

[darksidedog]

It seems to be a common theme around the world at the moment that none of the candidates running is particularly appealing. I would join the 60 per cent voting Macron to keep the far right out of power too though. Too much hatred in the world already to let them create more.

[kmj]

Not a vote for Macron more a vote against Le Pen i think

[Fulwell53]

1 hour ago, kmj said:

Not a vote for Macron more a vote against Le Pen i think

Marine is the french version of yingluck.

Full on puppet of the far right.

Restoration of the guillotine for people of colour only, forced labour camps ...eat your heart out trump.

They say Macron is the bankers candidate. Then she is the candidate for the rest of  big business.

IIf you are black there will be no such thing as minimum wage if there is a wage at all.

[elgordo38]

Pssst French voter if you did not know this guy that your going to hand over the reins of government to is your worst enemy a BANKER!!

[Jingthing]

6 minutes ago, elgordo38 said:

Pssst French voter if you did not know this guy that your going to hand over the reins of government to is your worst enemy a BANKER!!

Beats a fascist and I reject defining his entire ideology and political movement based his previous professional life. 

[alocacoc]

Here we go. One step further:

French media warned not to publish Emmanuel Macron leaks

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/may/06/french-warned-not-to-publish-emmanuel-macron-leaks

[Jingthing]

Yeah, but it's been leaked by alt-right bots, etc. on the net. 

Le Pen fans, forget about it, the fascist is on the verge of getting beaten BIGLY. 

[elgordo38]

46 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

Yeah, but it's been leaked by alt-right bots, etc. on the net. 

Le Pen fans, forget about it, the fascist is on the verge of getting beaten BIGLY. 

No doubt your right but I stand by my feelings on bankers. Like lawyers never met one I liked or would vote for. 

[elgordo38]

3 hours ago, Jingthing said:

Beats a fascist and I reject defining his entire ideology and political movement based his previous professional life. 

Well now I always like your posts now that that is out of the way and talking about his previous professional life might he morph into another DT?? Before the election like DT great promises can be made. After the election look out for a Top Gun mentality in his approach to labor. We are retired so why should be care for our fellow man.?

[alocacoc]

In less than 8 hours we know more. I don't trust the polls.

Edited May 7, 2017 by alocacoc

[hgma]

This may sound weird but i sincerely think our pension depending on the euro is at stake in this elections.

Having suffered artificial market corrections and interconnections, strong or weak, we lost 30+% of our spending income and change to stay in the country we adore.......right.?

So for now.......SC(^)* politics and vote for my euro value back to 50!!

 

[webfact]

PLEASE CONTINUE:

Macron wins French presidency, to sighs of relief in Europe

By Sudip Kar-Gupta

 

French President-elect Emmanuel Macron delivers a speech at his campaign headquarters after early results in the second round in the 2017 French presidential election in Paris, France, May 7, 2017. REUTERS/Lionel Bonaventure/Pool

 

PARIS (Reuters) - Emmanuel Macron was elected president of France on Sunday with a business-friendly vision of European integration, defeating Marine Le Pen, a far-right nationalist who threatened to take France out of the European Union.

 

Full story: https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/982031-macron-wins-french-presidency-to-sighs-of-relief-in-europe/

 

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/Admin