French Socialist, Green, right-wing candidates back Macron in election run-off against Le Pen
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French President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday received the backing of the defeated Socialist, Communist, Green and right-wing candidates in his second-round election battle later this month against far-right leader Marine Le Pen. Her only endorsement so far is expected to come from her hard-right challenger Éric Zemmour.
In a boost for the president, Communist Party candidate Fabien Roussel, Socialist Anne Hidalgo, Yannick Jadot of the Greens and right-wing Les Républicains candidate Valérie Pécresse said they would vote for him to prevent the far-right leader coming to power.
“So that France does not fall into hatred of all against all, I solemnly call on you to vote on April 24 against the far-right of Marine Le Pen,” Hidalgo said.
Pécresse warned of “disastrous consequences” if Macron did not win the runoff.
In a poll carried out by Ipsos & Sopra Steria for FRANCE 24 at 9pm (19:00 GMT), Macron secured 28.4 percent of the votes in the first round of the elections against Le Pen’s 23.4 percent.
French hardleft candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon simply called on his supporters not to vote for Le Pen in the second round of the presidential election that takes place on April 24.
“We know for whom we will never vote … you should not support Le Pen … there must not be one single vote for Le Pen in the second round,” Mélenchon said in a speech to his supporters on Sunday.
But Le Pen can expect support from far-right candidate Zemmour who is set to call on his supporters to back her, Marion Marechal – who is an ally of Zemmour and Le Pen’s niece – told BFM TV.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP, REUTERS)
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