Irish Examiner View: Macron faces tough battle in election run-off

The feeling in France is that this is an election president Emmanuel Macron will find considerably more difficult to win than that of five years ago.

French President and centrist presidential candidate Emmanuel Macron. Picture: Lewis Joly/AP.

The late French president, soldier, and statesman Charles de Gaulle once asked: “How can you govern a country which has 246 varieties of cheese?” 

This is a pertinent question, especially so following Sunday’s first round of the country’s presidential election, which left the incumbent, Emmanuel Macron, and longstanding far-right candidate Marine Le Pen once again facing each other in a run-off for the keys to the Élysée Palace on April 24.