French President Emmanuel Macron urged his supporters not to think that he win but second term in elections this month, assuming that one of his far-right rivals could have beaten him.
In his only big rally of in the campaign, the French leader pointed to his own victory in 2017 and UK vote for Brexit previous year as examples of unexpected political results.
“Extremist danger today even more than a few months ago, a few years ago,” he told supporters who collected in auditorium at La Defense just outside Paris on Saturday.
“Don’t trust commentators or opinion polls. who say it’s impossible, unthinkable, who say that the election already won and all will be well”. look at us, look at you, five years ago. People said it was impossible. Look at Brexit and so many elections where result seemed unbelievable, but it actually happened.”
Opinion Polls project that Macron will come out on top in in first round of vote next weekend ahead of far-right candidate Marine Le Pen. Then he is expected to win against her in in second as well as final round two weeks later, same as five years ago, but this time the polls predict a much smaller lead of victory.
According to latest Ipsos survey published on Macron to get 26 percent on Saturday of first round votes and then Le Pen on 21 percent and farleft candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon on 15.5 percent. in second roundMacron would have outpaced Le Pen by 53% to 47.
Macron campaigned as a candidate in 2017 who was “neither right nor left”. He never kept elected office and was hailed as a breath of fresh air. He crushed two main political movements that have held the presidency for in past six decades: the Gaullists, now represented conservative Republicans and Socialists.
However, this time it is seen as part of of institution after five years in Elysee Palace.
Macron’s ratings soar in first weeks of war in Ukraine because he was considered the leader in time of conflict. However, this rebound quickly disappeared, and its outstanding role in international attempts to impose sanctions on Russia and persuading Vladimir Putin to withdraw his troops limited his time on in campaign trail in home.
Some voters among left and green who supported him last time also say they don’t like what they see as his right-wing economic policies and his reputation for arrogance.
In his speech on On Saturday, Macron highlighted his accomplishments, including cutting unemployment to a minimum for more decade – and promised to aim for full Job in in next five years.
He also sought to polish their powers in in fight against climate change, claiming that with nuclear powerinvestments in renewable energy sources and energy saving measures France “will become first great nation to move away from fossil fuels.”
Macron stressed his commitment to Europe and the EU in difference from both Le Pen and Mélenchon – and said that Europe of joint defense, environmental protection and regulated capitalism were an important counterbalance to the superpower “duopoly”. of USA and China andgreat mess” of geopolitics.
” world of the world that we used to consider eternal, world of continuous forward progress what we used to think was unstoppable, it all seems to fall apart in front of our eyes,” he said.
“What we are experiencing is a kind of of great disorder,” Macron said, citing problems of natural world And environment, of capitalism and rise of inequality, of religious extremism and conspiracy theories; and “geopolitical turmoil”. with Return of wars and dreams of empire, and a ghost, perhaps of global armed conflict”.
