French Election: Macron .V. Le Pen

https://www.gbnews.uk/news/macron-faces-a-tough-fight-against-le-pen-as-france-votes/268596 Quoting beginning:

France votes on Sunday in the first round of a presidential election, with far-right candidate Marine Le Pen posing an unexpected threat to President Emmanuel Macron's re-election hopes.

Until just weeks ago, opinion polls pointed to an easy win for the pro-European Union, centrist Macron, who was boosted by his active diplomacy over Ukraine, a strong economic recovery and the weakness of a fragmented opposition. But his late entry into the campaign, with only one major rally that even his supporters found underwhelming, and his focus on an unpopular plan to increase the retirement age, have dented the president's ratings, along with a steep rise in inflation.

In contrast, the anti-immigration, eurosceptic far-right Le Pen has toured France confidently, all smiles, her supporters chanting "We will win! We will win!". She has been boosted by a months-long focus on cost of living issues and a big drop in support for her rival on the far-right, Eric Zemmour.

Kudos to Marie Le Pen for going up against Macron again, I admire her perseverance and hope that she wins!
The Western world can certainly use more leaders with conservative values.
Macron and Biden, seem to both be cut from the same cloth . . . Global elites bent on ushering in the great reset.

If I were a French citizen, which of the two would I vote for? Probably not Macron. This is what the BBC website says about Le Pen:

Now 53, she has promised to halt abuse of the right to asylum, with a referendum on restricting immigration. And she wants to ban the Islamic hijab being worn in public areas. She also seeks to turn the European Union into an alliance of nations unchallenged by EU laws and pull France out of Nato's integrated command. Marine Le Pen wants to waive income tax for those under 30 and exempt companies from tax contributions if they raise minimum wages by 10% for many of their staff.

More details on her EU and NATO policies here.

I don't agree with any weakening of NATO, especially with the current Russia > Ukraine invasion, but I think, on balance, I would vote for her.

BBC website, news:

Emmanuel Macron has won five more years as France's president after a convincing victory over rival Marine Le Pen, who nevertheless secured the far right's highest share of the vote yet. He won by 58.55% to 41.45%, a greater margin than expected.

The centrist leader told jubilant supporters at the foot of the Eiffel Tower that now the election was over he would be a "president for all". He is the first sitting president in 20 years to be re-elected.

Despite her loss, Ms Le Pen, 53, said her significant vote share still marked a victory. The ideas her National Rally represented had reached new heights, she told her supporters. But far-right rival Eric Zemmour pointed out that she had ultimately failed, just like her father who preceded her: "It's the eighth time the Le Pen name has been hit by defeat."

https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/analysis-loss-victory-frances-election-84288928 Quoting:

PARIS -- The far-right has gone mainstream in France.

That’s the headline from the landmark showing by Marine Le Pen in the French presidential election. The fierce nationalist didn’t win Sunday. But she edged another step closer — snatching a victory of sorts from her defeat to reelected President Emmanuel Macron.

With 41.5% of the vote, unprecedented for her, Le Pen's anti-foreigner, anti-system politics of disgruntlement are now more entrenched than ever in the psyche, thinking and political landscape of France.

Since the Le Pen dynasty — first her dad, Jean-Marie, and now Marine, his daughter — first started contesting presidential elections in 1974, never have so many French voters bought into their doctrine that multicultural and multiracial France, a country with the words “Liberty, Equality, Fraternity” inscribed on its public buildings, would be richer, safer and somehow more French if it was less open to foreigners and the outside world . . .

“In this defeat, I can’t help but feel a form of hope," she [Le Pen] said. “I will never abandon the French."

Surpassing 40% of the vote elevates Le Pen into illustrious, mainstream company. Since Gen. Charles de Gaulle beat François Mitterrand by 55% to 45% in 1965, all defeated finalists lost 40-something to 50-something. With two exceptions, both named Le Pen. Jean-Marie was trounced 82% to 18% by Jacques Chirac in 2002 and Marine lost 66% to 34% to Macron in 2017.

Voters used to regard it as their civic duty to keep the Le Pens’ score low, seeing a ballot against them as a blow against racism and xenophobia. Fewer think that way now. By championing cost-of-living issues, befriending the working class, changing her party’s name and distancing herself from her father, Le Pen broadened her appeal and made herself less scary to growing swaths of France's electorate. Immigration isn't the top concern for all her supporters. They're not all wary of the EU, Muslims and foreigners. But Le Pen does speak to many who feel unheard and uncared for by officials in Paris and Brussels.

And so although Macron became the first French president in 20 years to win a second term, he also has failed: Failed to achieve the goal that he set himself at the outset of his presidency. Five years ago, in his triumphant victory speech, Macron pledged to cut the ground from under Le Pen’s feet by assuaging the voter anger she feeds on. “I will do everything in the five years to come so there is no more reason to vote for the extremes,” he said.

Yet France’s extremes are now doing better than ever, finding growing, enthusiastic and completely unabashed audiences for “us against them” far-right rhetoric. In far-right speak, “us” are largely white and Christian people being submerged by migration, impoverished by globalization, terrorized by Islamic fundamentalists and losing their French identity to imported cultures, religions and values. “Them” are all those they blame: the elites, foreigners, financiers, the EU, Muslims, “the system.” Their list is long.

I thought that the vote would have been closer, but then I heard that 80% of Muslims voted for Macron. So there’s that.