French elections

Yes, a win. Happy with the result. Feel Macron has to walk new ground in France. Hope it's not too rocky for him.

Yes that is a relief , wonder how he will deal with TM and Brexit.

Thank goodness. The hard Right is clearly not quite so desirable to European countries as some Brexiteers would have had us believe.

Not much of a surprise.

Thank you M. Macron for saving Europe from another nationalist. Putin and Trump will be dissappointed. Liberals everywhere will celebrate.

This morning Uk bookmakers had Le Pen favourite to win!
Thank goodness sense prevailed and we have a pro EU President.

No surprise at all.....the surprise would have been if Le Pen had won!
I did hear that she is really waiting for the next election ( so Macron had better not mess up.)
Just to say... it has nothing to do with Brexit, although some posters always have to get something in about it.
Many left wing people here in the UK voted to Leave, many right wing people here in the UK wanted to Remain in the EU.
Le Pen and her party are just not popular, simple as that.

I'm relieved he got in but still worried that so many people would even consider voting for Le Pen, let alone vote for her.

My husband, who, like me broadly supports Labour's current leadership and policies, voted to leave because he believes the EU is a bloated and corrupt "old boys' club" that is largely unaccountable.

I had some sympathy with that point of view but in the final analysis I decided to vote to stay in, partly for the protection it offers and partly because I didn't like the racist, isolationist rhetoric that many of the leavers' spokespeople were using.

Of the people I know, the majority of Labour, Greens and Lib Dems voted to remain, whereas the Conservatives that I know voted to leave.

I think that the issue of EU membership was a significant factor in the French election. Le Pen expressed her delight at the UK's vote to leave and used it to urge the French people to vote for her as an opponent of EU membership.

Macron has a hard job ahead of him and I hope he can do it because I truly fear Le Pen getting in next time.

To say it has nothing to do with Brexit is rather simplistic. Le Pen did stop saying she would have a vote about Frexit but was anti EU. She too wanted to go backwards and reintroduce the Franc!

Macron is pro EU , I'm pleased the far right didn't succeed. Some nasty comments by the Brexit lobby on Twitter etc about Macron unsurprisingly.

From what I've heard overnight, although he won by a huge margin many of the votes were against Le Pen rather than any enthusiasm for him.

It's a strange world when we're celebrating the win of an Establishment figure and Rothschild banker!

I really can't remember we Brits being this interested in the result of a French election before. It must be because our issues are their issues, (the economy, immigration etc) whereas in the past we used to ignore each others' problems. All very ironic as we have now chosen to distance ourselves with Brexit.

The French elections are very different from the UK ones. If no candidates get sufficient majority there is a second round run off - this happens with local elections too. The previous weekend there were 11 candidates and the top two then have a second contest. Macron and LePen had similar percentages in the first round - locally they both had about 20/24% - some of the less popular had less than10%. The second vote is often tactical voting as to who you would like to keep out.

I think the increased interest is due to the final round not having a candidate from one of the main parties - that's a first, I assume.

Imagine a UK election without the Labour and Tory party?

The next question appears to be can Macron get a working government together ?
I agree with the comment about Le Pen I think she is lining up for the next election.

But Christine will it be Marine herself or the niece? French politicians are getting younger and younger!

I was reading about how Macron is married to his drama teacher and that one of his step daughters was in his class at school.

Another first Riverwalk, is that Macron is the first French president not to have children, (à la Theresa May). It was interesting how at his victory speech all Brigitte's children and grandchildren were wheeled out for hugs and kisses (Trump-like).

When Macron's mother confronted drama teacher Brigitte at school about her son's affair, she hurled that awful reproach, "You have your own family, you're denying him his own children."

And that matters because?

That was a question to Pittcity.

Thinking that the French election had no links to Brexit is incredibly naive.

There is a globalist (oh, the irony) group, which had been hoping that Brexit would bring down the EU like a house of cards. Well, it didn't work in the Netherlands, Austria and now France. It won't work in Germany.

There's no need for complacency, because there are always the next elections. They'll be regrouping. Farage is doing his "sour grapes" and "poor victim" act, because Le Pen, whom he supported, lost. Hopefully, people will see that he and his friends arethe real enemies of democracy.

Macron's got a tough job. His first step is going to have to be to form a government.

Secondly, Macron is going to have to deal with all the smears about his private life. I expect he can cope with that after 20+ years. He could always have a chat with Melania Trump.

You're right Riverwalk. I'm not celebrating him getting in, just the fact that Le Pen has been kept out.

Same here, Eloethan. I seriously hope Macron is up to the job,because there's going to be backlash if he isn't.

Just been reading Farage's Twitter feed. After Brexit and Trump, he and his cronies really were hoping for great things, but it's not going to plan so far. They really think they're defending the West against a Muslim invasion. There are lots of references to grandfathers fighting on the Somme - but the frogs can look after themselves now (and that sort of thing). Pathetic!