PARIS (AP) — French polling agencies are projecting that centrist President Emmanuel Macron will win France’s presidential runoff Sunday, beating far-right rival Marine Le Pen in a tight race overshadowed by the war in Ukraine and a surge in French support for extremist ideas.
If the projections are borne out by official results, Macron would be the first French president in 20 years to win a second term. He would face a divided nation and a battle to keep his parliamentary majority in legislative elections in June.
Five years ago, Macron won a sweeping victory. The margin is expected to be way smaller this time: Polling agencies projected that Macron would win between 57% and 58.5% percent of the vote, with Le Pen getting between 41.5% and 43%.
