Emmanuel Macron is to be re-elected for a second term as French president after defeating his far-right rival Marine Le Pen in Sunday’s run-off, according to projections by polling agencies based on early returns.
Le Pen conceded shortly after the first projections showed Macron winning more than 58 per cent of the vote, vowing to fight on with her Rassemblement National party in elections for the National Assembly in June. About 28 per cent of voters did not turn out, the highest level of abstention since 1969.
Speaking to supporters in front of the Eiffel Tower in Paris, Macron acknowledged that he would have to preside over a divided nation in his second term after so many backed his rival or failed to vote.