France’s Emmanuel Macron warns of ‘Trump hangover’ as he faces Marine Le Pen in presidential election
- The leader compared Sunday’s vote to the 2016 US election, saying it involved a fundamental choice about the direction of the country
- The latest surveys show Macron leading his far-right challenger, but a large number of undecided voters means a surprise result can’t be ruled out
French President Emmanuel Macron compared France’s choice in Sunday’s presidential run-off to that of US voters before they elected Donald Trump into the White House, while warning that his current polling lead was not a guarantee of victory.
“The next day they woke up with a hangover,” Macron told BFM TV on Friday, saying that the situation in France is very similar as it involves a very fundamental choice about the direction of the country.
The candidates made final appeals on Friday to undecided voters weighing fears of what a victory by the far-right’s Marine Le Pen could bring against their anger at Macron’s record.
According to the latest surveys for Sunday’s run-off, fear may win the day over loathing: Macron the centrist, pro-European incumbent leads his anti-immigration, Eurosceptic challenger by 10-14 points, well outside margins of error.
But the fact that nearly three in 10 voters say they will not vote or have not made up their minds means a surprise Le Pen win similar to events such as Brexit and the election of Trump as US president cannot entirely be ruled out.