Macron cements French presidential frontrunner status with combative debate performance

French President Emmanuel Macron, candidate for his re-election, and French far-right Rassemblement National party presidential candidate Marine Le Pen sit prior to taking part in a French presidential election debate, in Saint-Denis, north of Paris, France April 20, 2022. Ludovic Marin/Pool via REUTERS

(This April 21 story corrects to remove inaccurate quote "Mrs Le Pen is much more disciplined" from paragraph 9)

PARIS (Reuters) - French President Emmanuel Macron cleared a major hurdle on the path to re-election with a combative TV debate performance against far-right candidate Marine Le Pen that convinced most viewers, a poll said, even if he was still deemed arrogant.