After a long and unusually brutal campaign, France will finally elect its next president Sunday, May 7. The choices are far-right candidate Marine Le Pen of the National Front, who has run on a strongly anti-immigrant and anti-EU platform, and centrist Emmanuel Macron, who wants to stay in the EU and maintain France’s current policies on immigration. The vote is widely seen as a referendum on the electoral strength of the European far-right. That means it could be bad news for politicians who share Le Pen’s beliefs — if polls hold, Macron will beat her by an enormous margin.
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French presidential election: news and updates
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September 21, 2018
French far-right leader Marine Le Pen has been ordered to take a psychiatric exam
She’s being investigated for disturbing tweets she sent about ISIS.
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June 18, 2017
"France is back." Macron's En Marche party just swept the French parliament.
A decisive majority in parliament gives Emmanuel Macron an opportunity to advance his centrist agenda.
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May 9, 2017
6 things to watch as Macron takes office in France
“It’s still a deeply divided country.”
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May 8, 2017
4 winners and 5 losers from the French election
Immigrants and refugees won. Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin lost.
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May 7, 2017
France just rejected the far right and elected Emmanuel Macron
Marine Le Pen of the National Front loses historic vote for the French presidency.
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May 6, 2017
Macron vs. Le Pen: the French presidential election, explained
The final round to rule them all.
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May 6, 2017
Serge and Beate Klarsfeld hunted Nazis. Now they fight Marine Le Pen.
After decades of hunting down Nazis, the Klarsfelds are working to stop Marine Le Pen.
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May 6, 2017
France’s best hope against a far-right takeover is an inexperienced former banker
Emmanuel Macron is just 39, has never been elected, and represents the global elite. Can he beat Marine Le Pen?
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May 6, 2017
Marine Le Pen is trying to win the French elections with a subtler kind of xenophobia
How France’s far-right presidential candidate is rebranding her party.
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May 6, 2017
Defeating Marine Le Pen won't be enough to save France
If Macron stumbles in office — and he faces steep challenges — the door could be wide open for the far right.
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May 5, 2017
Marine Le Pen wants to protect France’s LGBTQ community — but opposes same-sex marriage
Marine Le Pen, the French far right candidate for president, has tried to win over gay supporters.
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May 4, 2017
Why Obama just endorsed Emmanuel Macron for president of France
In the age of far-right populism, Western elections have gone international.
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May 3, 2017
Le Pen and Macron resort to name calling in final French presidential debate
The French certainly have a way with words.
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May 2, 2017
Marine Le Pen plagiarized from a political opponent — and called it an homage
With the French election a week away, the National Front candidate is trying to appeal to more voters — by any means necessary.
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April 27, 2017
What the French election tells us about the rise of populism
This is not an existential crisis for Western democracy.
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April 25, 2017
The French election, explained in 9 maps and charts
You love charts. You love France. Here are some charts about France.
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April 24, 2017
Almost everyone in French politics is working to stop Le Pen
Even conservatives have united behind center-left Macron in an effort to stop the National Front.
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April 24, 2017
The French election, explained in 500 words
The decline of the establishment — and the rise of a new kind of political battle.
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April 23, 2017
European leaders seem pretty happy about the French election results
“Long live France, long live Europe!”
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April 23, 2017
France's historic presidential election results, explained
Marine Le Pen and Emmanuel Macron come out on top.
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April 21, 2017
Marine Le Pen: France’s Trump is on the rise
A political push from France’s far-right.
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April 20, 2017
Watch: Obama’s bromantic call to France’s Emmanuel Macron
Obama’s call to the centrist frontrunner highlights what’s at stake in the French election: Europe.
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April 17, 2017
John Oliver warns French voters: “Britain and America fucked up. Don’t fuck up too.”
The Last Week Tonight host had a message for the French ahead of their upcoming elections.
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April 17, 2017
A far-left politician is shaking up France’s presidential race
Jean-Luc Mélenchon and the populist left: the surge of support for “Unsubmissive” France.