Emmanuel Macron, Marine Le Pen to fight for presidency

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CENTRIST EMMANUEL Macron has gone through to the second round of the French election, where he will face far-right leader Marine Le Pen.

Mr Macron, a former banker, is seen as a political newcomer – and ran without the backing of an established party.

After topping Sunday’s vote, he is now favourite to win the run-off on May 7.

It is the first time in six decades that neither of France’s main left-wing or right-wing parties has had a candidate in the second round.

Mr Macron won 23.8% of votes in the first round, while Ms Le Pen took 21.5%. The turnout was high, at almost 79%.

The nearest challengers, centre-right François Fillon and hard-left Jean-Luc Mélenchon, fell behind with just over 19% each.

At 39, Mr Macron could become the youngest president France has ever had – and the first president in the Fifth Republic who does not belong to a major party.

He secured 8.4 million votes – more than any other candidate – in the first round.

Mr Macron was current President Francois Hollande’s economy minister but quit to create his own party, En Marche, which pushes a liberal, pro-EU agenda. BBC