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French President Emmanuel Macron and his far-right challenger Marine Le Pen go head-to-head in a high-stakes TV debate on Wednesday, seeking to sway undecided voters with just days left before the second and final round of the presidential election on Sunday. Watch the debate live or follow our liveblog below starting at 8:45pm Paris time (GMT+2).
Macron holds a solid lead in polls ahead of the April 24 run-off, but his political allies have warned against complacency ahead of the prime-time duel with Le Pen – their only direct debate of the campaign – which will be watched by millions.
Le Pen cleared her schedule this week to concentrate on preparing for the face-off, hoping to avoid a repeat of the 2017 debate fiasco that ended her hopes of pulling off an upset win five years ago.
This time, Macron will not be the outsider making his first run at public office – he will have a complicated, at times controversial, five-year record to defend against a challenger who has tried to soften her more extremist views.
>> Infographic: Macron vs Le Pen, world views at odds
An Ipsos poll released Wednesday gave Macron the advantage, with 56 percent to 44 percent for Le Pen. But analysts say undecided voters and abstention could still sharply sway the final result.
Far-left candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon scored nearly 22 percent in the first round – just slightly less than Le Pen – and has refused to urge his supporters to vote for Macron to keep the far right from the presidency.
Which way his left-leaning supporters choose to vote on Sunday could prove crucial – and many of them have already expressed a visceral rejection of Macron’s policies.
Click on the player above to watch the debate or scroll below for live commentary in English.
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