France has only one realistic choice: to vote for Macron
With far-right candidate Marine Le Pen the only challenger left in presidential election, the fate of the EU and globalisation are at stake
Many European governments certainly think Macron is the best choice. It is natural that they should as Le Pen’s vision is for closed borders to migration, setting up barriers to trade, scrapping the euro and holding a referendum on France’s membership of the EU. If voters were to choose her and she has her way, the European project would be no more. The collapse of the EU would bring an end to the free flow of trade, goods and people to and from the world’s leading economic bloc, all but spelling an end to globalisation.
Still, it is not surprising that Le Pen went through to the second round, just as her father, National Front founder Jean-Marie Le Pen, did in 2002. France is beset by a host of challenges, among them terrorism, near double-digit unemployment, social divisions and inequality. Just as happened in the US and Britain, the electorate has turned against what is perceived to be a ruling elite with a strong sense of entitlement. As a result, the French have opted for change, in the process punishing the mainstream parties.