Tag: France

• Wednesday, May 3rd 2017 - 05:46 UTC

  High abstention in the range of 25% threatens French presidential runoff

  

  Fears that a high abstention rate could help far-right candidate Marine Le Pen in France's presidential runoff strengthened on Tuesday when two-thirds of far-left supporters said they intend to abstain or cast a blank ballot. An internal survey of supporters of defeated far-left firebrand Jean-Luc Melenchon showed only 35% would back pro-EU centrist Emmanuel Macron, Le Pen's rival and the frontrunner.

• Tuesday, April 25th 2017 - 07:19 UTC

  Marine Le Pen steps down as party leader to reach out to voters of defeated candidates

  

  Far-right French presidential candidate Marine Le Pen has announced that she is stepping aside as leader of her National Front (FN) party. The move comes just a day after she reached the second round of the French election, where she will face centrist Emmanuel Macron. Ms Le Pen told French TV she needed to be above partisan considerations.

• Monday, April 24th 2017 - 07:53 UTC

  Macron is favorite over Le Pen to win the French presidential runoff in May

  

  The independent pro Europe Emmanuel Macron will face far-right leader Marine Le Pen in a run-off for the French presidency on 7 May, near-final results show. With 96% of votes counted from Sunday's first round, Mr. Macron has 23.9% with Ms Le Pen on 21.4%.

• Monday, April 24th 2017 - 07:05 UTC

  Euro jumps to a five-month high as French election results bring relief to investors

  

  The value of the Euro jumped to a five-month high, after the first round of voting in the French presidential election on Sunday. Results indicate that independent pro Europe pro deregulation Emmanuel Macron, and far-right Marine Le Pen are through to the final round.

• Friday, April 21st 2017 - 10:34 UTC

  French first round presidential election on Sunday has no clear winner

  

  French centrist Emmanuel Macron is set to come out on top in the first round of France's presidential election on Sunday as far right leader Marine Le Pen fell further behind him in an Elabe poll published on Friday. However, neither is totally assured a spot in the May 7 runoff round as both conservative Francois Fillon and hard-left candidate Jean-Luc Melenchon were seen narrowing Macron and Le Pen's lead over them.

• Wednesday, April 19th 2017 - 05:36 UTC

  Le Pen promises voters a moratorium on legal immigration: “Give us France back”

  

  Far-right French presidential candidate Marine Le Pen called for a moratorium on legal immigration in a Paris campaign speech. As her campaign reaches its final week before the first round of elections, it was the first time Le Pen said she would, as president, suspend all immigration to France.

• Wednesday, April 19th 2017 - 05:17 UTC

  French police foil “imminent and violent attack” ahead of Sunday's presidential election

  

  Two Frenchmen arrested in Marseille on Tuesday planned an “imminent and violent attack” ahead of the first round of the presidential election on Sunday, France's interior minister said. France's internal intelligence agency, which had been looking for the two suspects for more than a week, had warned main candidates in the election that there was a threat to their security, campaign officials said.

• Monday, March 20th 2017 - 12:32 UTC

  French televised debate among top five presidential contenders in volatile atmosphere

  

  France's presidential election moves into high gear this Monday when the top five contenders face off in a TV debate that could help sway legions of undecided voters, a month before they go to the polls. Centrist frontrunner Emmanuel Macron and far-right leader Marine Le Pen are expected to come under attack in the first of three debates ahead of the April 23 opening round in France's most unpredictable election in decades.

• Wednesday, March 8th 2017 - 12:08 UTC

  UK has made a “bad choice at a bad time” with Brexit, argues Hollande

  

  Britain will not be able to hang on to the benefits of European Union membership once it has left, French president Francois Hollande has warned. Hollande, who leaves office in May, said the UK had made a “bad choice at a bad time” in voting for Brexit.

• Monday, March 6th 2017 - 18:45 UTC

  Fillon and Juppe confirm deep division among French conservatives

  

  Former presidential candidate Alain Juppe said on Monday he would not run again despite calls within the conservative Les Republicains party for him to replace the increasingly isolated Francois Fillon, who faces defeat over a phony jobs scandal.