French people

Polls opened in France's presidential election on Sunday, with voters choosing between young centrist Emmanuel Macron and far-right leader Marine Le Pen in a watershed vote for the country and Europe, reported AFP.

Voters across France were choosing a new president Sunday in an unusually tense and important election that could decide Europe’s future, making a stark choice between pro-business independent Emmanuel Macron and far-right populist Marine Le Pen.

"In 1984, Jean-Marie Le Pen said something that heralded what is happening today. He spoke of the 'Le Pen-ization' of conscience," French-Algerian writer Karim Amellal told Skai TV's "Istories" program on Tuesday while describing precisely how things came to be.

Centrist French presidential candidate Emmanuel Macron extended his lead in the polls over his far-right rival Marine Le Pen on May 5, only two days before the county's most important election for decades with two diametrically opposed views of Europe and France's place in the world being at stake.

French centrist Emmanuel Macron and his far-right presidential rival Marine Le Pen clashed over terrorism, the economy and Europe on May 3 in a bad-tempered TV debate that laid bare their profoundly different visions for the country. The duel ahead of May 7's election was billed as a confrontation between Macron's call for openness and pro-market reforms and Le Pen's France-first nationalism.

French centrist Emmanuel Macron and his far-right presidential rival Marine Le Pen clashed over terrorism, the economy and Europe on May 3 in a bad-tempered TV debate that laid bare their profoundly different visions for the country. The duel ahead of May 7's election was billed as a confrontation between Macron's call for openness and pro-market reforms and Le Pen's France-first nationalism.

Things got quite heated between Marine Le Pen and Emmanuel Macron during tonight’s televised head-to-head presidential debate.

CNN reports that Le Pen opened the debate by immediately skewering Macron – a centrist – as a “cold banker” that would raise unemployment levels and allow elites to “plunder” the economy.

French centrist Emmanuel Macron said far-right leader Marine Le Pen risked starting a civil war with her policies during a presidential debate between the two rivals ahead of this weekend's runoff, reported AFP.

France's unprecedented presidential race has thrown many voters into emotional turmoil, causing nerves to fray around the dinner table, at the office and on social media.

A week before the decisive second round in France's presidential election, many voters are skeptical that either of the two candidates can solve chronic unemployment or tackle security concerns, a poll published on Sunday found, reported Reuters.