The all-important run-off to the French presidential election kick off on Sunday, May 7, following torrents of campaigning by centrist leader Emmanuel Macron and right-winger Marine Le Pen. These were the two candidates that won top honours from a total of 11 on April 23, and will battle it out for the topmost political post in the country.
Macron has been the rallying point for many of the voices of reason – both in France and abroad. Even some of the candidates who lost the elections rooted for him to become the next French president. However, possibly the biggest endorsement he could manage was from former US president Barack Obama.
On the other hand, Marine Le Pen has been a divisive figure, with her "French first" right-wing views. And even though she is not the front-runner in the run-off, she may very well win the election in much the same manner Donald Trump did in the US.
Voting for the run-offs already began from Saturday (May 6) in the overseas territories, where French expatriates have exercised their franchise. On Sunday (Mqay 7), around 70,000 polling booths will remain open from 8 am local time, or CEST, [11:30 am IST] for 12 hours for the French to take their pick on the next president. The trends will start becoming apparent by 8 pm CEST.
Here are the LIVE updates of the elections:
10 am IST [6:30 am CEST]: It is still one and a half hours before polling for the run-offs formally begins in France. Opinion polls suggest a comfortable victory for Macron. But they had also suggested something similar for Hillary Clinton in the US last year. What will it be this time?
