Polling consistently shows that sitting President Emmanuel Macron has a 10-point margin over his far-Right rival Marine Le Pen, a lead he has maintained throughout the campaign.
But that lead is far slimmer than when the pair went head-to-head in the second round in 2017 — an indication of how close the count might turn out to be.
At a rally in the northern town of Arras on Thursday, Le Pen labelled centrist Macron “endlessly arrogant”, playing on his reputation among many in France as the “President of the Rich”. Macron, a former investment banker who has cut taxes for the wealthy, is finding it hard to connect with the working class and in a bid to attract voters from both the Left and mainstream Right, has offered “complete renewal”.
Meanwhile, Le Pen has focused her campaign on improving living standards and states that she’ll make social housing, jobs and welfare a priority.
She says income tax for under-thirties will be scrapped and that she’ll reduce VAT on fuel by nearly 15 per cent.
Though Le Pen has shifted away from some of her far-Right plans during this campaign, she still has some controversial policies including giving French nationals priority on housing and social services ahead of foreigners and banning headscarves in public places.
But this election might in the end hinge on how supporters of Jean-Luc Mélenchon choose to cast their vote. The Leftist received 22 per cent of the vote in the first round, and both Le Pen and Macron have been attempting to woo his supporters.
This could indicate where Macron’s 10-point margin comes from, with Mélenchon telling supporters to vote for Macron or stay at home.
France votes, there’s going to be plenty of repercussions. I’ll be in Paris all weekend for Sky News, hearing directly from the people casting their votes and analysing the outcome.
Letter from Paris, by Sophy Ridge, Sky News presenter
