Emmanuel Macron and Marine Le Pen stepped up their campaign with a busy schedule of last-minute visits to attract floating voters as France’s fierce presidential race enters its final hours.
While voting is on Sunday, according to French election rules, all campaigns and opinion polls are due to end by midnight on Friday, and on Thursday the two candidates rushed to squeeze in time.
Le Pen headed to Aras, in her northern fortress, for a rally as Macron entered more hostile territory in the Paris suburb of Saint-Denis, where radical leftist leader Jean-Luc Melenchon won more than 60% of the vote in the first round before almost two weeks.
On Wednesday night, the two candidates took part in an almost three-hour debate, with Macron emerging narrowly victorious, but it was also unlikely to change the intentions of many voters, with the president accused of arrogance and Le Pen distrusted. as a potential leader.
At the rally, Le Pen returned to the clash the night before, criticizing his rival. “I had Emmanuel Macron in front of me, who was very confident, very contemptuous, very arrogant, including in his posture,” she said. “I don’t think that surprised any Frenchman.”
The far-right candidate said Macron’s re-election would bring “social devastation”. “He will no longer be limited by anything – it would be even worse than the first term,” she said. “I will explain to them [the French] that another choice is possible. They must vote by listening to their minds and hearts. ”
Marin Le Pen poses for a photo in a truck restaurant in Roye. Photo: Alain Robert / SIPA / Rex / Shutterstock
Macron was greeted by the socialist mayor of Saint-Denis, Mathieu Anoten, who, unlike others on the left, called on voters to support Macron on Sunday.
The president rejected Le Pen’s accusations. “When you have no more arguments to oppose [the issues] you have to look for something else, “he said.
Macron said that the debate was “respectful”, but that “madam says a lot of strange things between you and me”.
He added: “I think things are already clear to people. There is a project to strengthen Europe… and a project that means the end of Europe. ”
Le Pen’s program is “inaccurate,” he said, and wondered how it would fund it.
“Our compatriots will make their decision on Sunday. “Until the last moment, nothing is decided,” he said.
Macron has promised more investment in poor areas such as Saint-Denis, including increased funding for schools and helping disadvantaged young people find work.
Hanotine said that if Le Pen won on Sunday, it would be a “disaster” for poor and socially mixed areas like Saint-Denis. “We need to focus on how to mobilize to elect the republic next Sunday. That is why, despite our differences, I supported Mr Macron.
The debate is shown on a screen in a bar in Paris. Photo: AFP / Getty Images
The marathon match between the two candidates on Wednesday was considered a key moment before Sunday’s vote. It was a rematch of the televised debate in 2017, during which the far-right leader became aggressive. This time Le Pen remained calm, though he still bumped from time to time. Le Monde likened Macron to a boa who slowly pressed his opponent to death.
Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said the debate was generally satisfactory. “If the presidential campaign itself was disappointing, here we saw the choice between two types of France, two different visions,” he told Europe 1 radio.
Jordan Bardella, head of the Le Pen National Rally, accused Macron of being “the number one public insult”, adding: “When he insults Marine Le Pen, as his supporters do, he really insults the French”.
Clement Bonn, the European minister, accused Le Pen of trying to organize Frexit covert. “On this subject, it was clear that Marine Le Pen did not have a project and that she simply cut Frexit into smaller pieces,” he said.
A spokesman for the government, Gabriel Attal, said that Le Pen had “changed his style, but not his essence”. He accused her of wanting to “divide the French”, reiterating Macron’s accusation that her proposed ban on Islamic headscarves in public places would provoke a “civil war” in the suburbs.
About 15.6 million people watched the debate, less than 16.6 million in 2017. The figure does not include those who watch online.
Elabe pollsters asked viewers after the debate, saying 59% found Macron more convincing than 39% for Le Pen. Among Melanchon’s supporters, whose 7.7 million voters are pursuing the two remaining candidates, the poll found that 61% found Macron convincing, compared to 36% for Le Pen. Only 29% of respondents believe that the far-right leader shows “the qualities needed to be president.”
Macron was considered more dynamic, a little more sincere, and a better program than Le Pen. Half said Macron was more arrogant than his opponent, while about half thought Le Pen was “anxious.”
Le Monde concluded that the debate had failed again for Le Pen. “Did she give the impression that she was ready to rule?” Le Parisien asked in an editorial. “This is the only issue that matters. Judging by the debate, she did not dispel the doubts. ” Le Figaro said the debate would not change voters’ intentions.
A Opinonway poll conducted after the debate suggests that Macron could win Sunday’s vote by 56% to 44%, a bigger difference than previously anticipated.
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