On Sunday April 24 the French public went to the polls for the second round of a presidential election between two candidates with very different visions for the future of France. The incumbent Emmanuel Macron has won five more years as president after a convincing victory over rival Marine Le Pen, who nevertheless secured the far right’s highest share of the vote ever. 

Macron swept to power in 2017 with the support of voters from the centre left and right, united behind a liberal, anti-establishment and pro-European movement. But after five years in power his support shifted notably to the right, as many left-wing voters became disillusioned by his conservative economic reforms and felt that he is out of touch with working class people. In overcoming these obstacles and convincing enough of the left to support him again, his victory signals a continuation of the status quo for France with liberal politics at home and a commitment to international alliances like the EU and NATO abroad. 

His challenger Marine Le Pen is a populist, who sought to soften the image of the far right and take France in a new direction. She amassed support in rural areas by tapping into anger over the cost of living crisis and distancing herself from the open racism of her father Jean-Marie. She also dropped some of the most controversial policies that sunk her campaign in 2017 — such as calling for France to leave the euro and restore the death penalty. But Le Pen held on to some of her most radical policies which include France leaving NATO, dramatically reducing the role of the EU and imposing a complete ban on the wearing of Muslim headscarves in public – a move that would have been unprecedented in Europe. 

The day after the election results were announced, two leading experts Sophie Pedder, Paris Bureau Chief of The Economist, and Ben Judah, writer and senior fellow at The Atlantic Council, joined us to digest the results and answered your questions on what it means for France, Europe and the world.