In France’s most consequential election in recent history, voters on Sunday endorsed Emmanuel Macron and Marine Le Pen — one a political novice, the other a far-right firebrand — both outsiders but with starkly different visions for the country, early returns and projections indicated. – New York Times
Campaigns offering starkly contrasting choices began their pitch to French voters Monday in a runoff battle for the presidency between a candidate who has preached hope for a more open nation and another who has darkly warned that globalization will destroy France. – Washington Post
The French presidential election has turned into a binary contest between two political outsiders, one a staunch defender of the postwar liberal order and the other a fierce populist intent on tearing it down. These opposing forces place France at the heart of a faultline running through western democracies. – Financial Times
Analysis: The rapid-fire endorsements of Mr. Macron, coming from across the political spectrum, represented a dynamic that has always prevailed in France when the National Front approaches executive power — the cross-party, anti-far right alliance the French call the “Republican Front.” The question now is whether that front can hold this time, as well. – New York Times
Editorial: The French choice is described in some quarters as pitting the “populist” Ms. Le Pen against the establishment Mr. Macron. But it’s more accurate to say they represent different visions of French nationalism. Ms. Le Pen’s blood-and-soil offer is well known. The challenge for Mr. Macron in the next two weeks is to offer a credible vision and program for an economically prosperous and confident France that is no longer the sick man of Europe. – Wall Street Journal (subscription required)
Anne Applebaum writes: Security for the fearful; safety for those who feel threatened, whether by immigration or unemployment; dynamism for static economies. On Sunday night, Le Pen called on French “patriots” to support her in the second round. In response, Macron must now define new forms of patriotism, and new forms of solidarity, for those in France who want to remain French but embrace the world. – Washington Post
Campaigns offering starkly contrasting choices began their pitch to French voters Monday in a runoff battle for the presidency between a candidate who has preached hope for a more open nation and another who has darkly warned that globalization will destroy France. – Washington Post
The French presidential election has turned into a binary contest between two political outsiders, one a staunch defender of the postwar liberal order and the other a fierce populist intent on tearing it down. These opposing forces place France at the heart of a faultline running through western democracies. – Financial Times
Analysis: The rapid-fire endorsements of Mr. Macron, coming from across the political spectrum, represented a dynamic that has always prevailed in France when the National Front approaches executive power — the cross-party, anti-far right alliance the French call the “Republican Front.” The question now is whether that front can hold this time, as well. – New York Times
Editorial: The French choice is described in some quarters as pitting the “populist” Ms. Le Pen against the establishment Mr. Macron. But it’s more accurate to say they represent different visions of French nationalism. Ms. Le Pen’s blood-and-soil offer is well known. The challenge for Mr. Macron in the next two weeks is to offer a credible vision and program for an economically prosperous and confident France that is no longer the sick man of Europe. – Wall Street Journal (subscription required)
Anne Applebaum writes: Security for the fearful; safety for those who feel threatened, whether by immigration or unemployment; dynamism for static economies. On Sunday night, Le Pen called on French “patriots” to support her in the second round. In response, Macron must now define new forms of patriotism, and new forms of solidarity, for those in France who want to remain French but embrace the world. – Washington Post
RSS Feed