Macron Decisively Defeats Le Pen in French Presidential Race

-- Emmanuel Macron overwhelmingly defeated anti-E.U. firebrand Marine Le Pen in France’s presidential election Sunday, bringing Europe’s populist tide to a crashing halt as voters selected the centrist political neophyte by a nearly 2-1 margin. At just 39, Macron will be France's youngest head of state since Napoleon Bonaparte. Griff Witte, James McAuley and Isaac Stanley-Becker report: “The result brought to a close a tumultuous and polarized campaign that defied prediction at nearly every turn, although not at the end. Pre-election polls had forecast a sizable Macron victory, and he delivered — winning some 66 percent of the vote."

 

Emmanuel Macron 

66.1%20,703,694 votes

Centrist, supports the E.U.

Marine Le Pen

10,637,120 votes33.9%

Far-right nationalist, anti‑E.U.

 

100% of communes reporting

“In a pointed endorsement of European unity, Macron strode to the stage at his raucous [victory party] to the strains of Beethoven’s ‘Ode to Joy’ theme, the European Union’s anthem. Alluding to the deep divisions laid bare by the campaign, he said Le Pen backers had ‘expressed an anger, a dismay, and I respect that. I will do everything possible in the five years to come so that they have no reason to vote for the extremes.' At her own gathering at a Paris restaurant and events center, a downcast Le Pen conceded defeat, telling her demoralized supporters that the country had ‘chosen continuity’ and that the election had drawn clear lines between ‘the patriots and the globalists.' The repudiation of Le Pen by French voters will soothe Europe’s anxious political establishment. But the outcome instantly puts pressure on Macron to deliver on promises made to an unhappy French electorate, including reform of two institutions notoriously resistant to change: the E.U. and the French bureaucracy."

Emmanuel Macron holds hands with his wife Brigitte  (AP/Thibault Camus)

Trump, who declined to formally endorse but clearly favored Le Pen, tweeted his congratulations to Macron: “I look very much forward to working with him!” he posted.

-- Macron's unlikely path to the presidency --> "His story is of a highly improbable ascent in a system that typically rewards entrenched political dynasties," James McAuley writes. “Macron, who has never held elected office, has now been elected to one of the most powerful executive positions in the Western world and will be the leader of Europe’s second-largest economy. He did it, analysts say, through a combination of luck and a campaign message attuned to a new political moment. In France, 2017 proved an ideal year to run as an independent candidate. A rare political vacuum emerged, and Macron — a former Socialist economy minister who stepped down from his post in July — was able to take full advantage. Macron perceived that the ‘new divide’ among French voters was not between left and right but rather between an open and closed society [and] defending an open, multicultural society was a central component of En Marche, the movement Macron launched in 2016. 'Globalization can be a great opportunity,' he said at one point on the campaign trail. 'There is no such thing as French culture,' he said at another. 'There is culture in France, and it is diverse.'"

Macron supporters celebrate in front of the Louvre. (Patrick Kovarik/Getty)

France’s new president will face a considerable challenge as he attempts to form a government: "Given that he has no party structure behind him, he will be deeply affected by the results of the parliamentary elections, scheduled for June."