Incumbent French President Emmanuel Macron is pinning his hopes of a second term on scooping up votes from his left-wing rival Jean-Luc Melanchon, who was eliminated in the first round of voting.
The centrist leader, 44, will face off with far-right nationalist Marine Le Pen in the second round on Sunday, and polls suggest he is on track to win.
On Friday the race entered the final stretch with candidates conducting their last tours before campaigning ceases at midnight.
Mr Macron and his far-right nationalist rival Marine Le Pen, 53, have tried hard to hoover up votes from Mr Melenchon’s supporters.
Mr Macron is talking up his green credentials, while Ms Le Pen says she will reduce the cost of living.
The Melenchon factor – 7.7 million
Mr Macron is banking on gaining support from the 7.7 million people who previously backed Mr Melenchon.
Of the 10 candidates ruled out of the race in the first ballot held on April 10, Mr Melenchon put up by far the strongest showing with more 7,712,520 people backing him, which accounted for 22 per cent of the overall votes cast.
Mr Macron emerged with 27.85 per cent of the vote, ahead of Ms Le Pen on 23.15 per cent.
Under the French system, a second round is held between the two leading contenders if no single candidate gains an absolute majority of the vote.
Mr Melenchon, 70, told his supporters afterwards that “not one single vote” should go to Ms Le Pen in the second round. However, he stopped short of urging his supporters to get behind Mr Macron’s attempt to secure a second term.
A subsequent survey by Mr Melenchon’s party, La France Insoumise (France Unbowed), suggested that many of his supporters had taken this to mean that they should abstain in the second round.
Macron’s British stronghold – 18,165
Internationally minded French expats are one of Mr Macron’s most loyal groups of supporters and one of the least favourable to Ms Le Pen.
The large number of French people in Britain makes the UK a particular stronghold for the president, who won 18,165 (52.6 per cent) of the votes registered in England in the first round.
Ms Le Pen took a paltry 887 (2.6 per cent), coming seventh behind Mr Macron, Mr Melenchon, far-right rival Eric Zemmour, centre-right Valerie Pecresse, ecologist Yannick Jadot and even unfancied socialist Anne Hidalgo.
The president and his allies have sought to persuade voters that France’s standing in the world is at risk if Ms Le Pen is at the helm of Europe’s second-largest economy.
Ms Le Pen denies wanting to leave the European Union but wants to loosen ties between its members – a view in stark contrast to Mr Macron’s pro-EU sentiments.
Stayed at home – 26.3 per cent
More than a quarter of registered voters, 12.8 million people, did not take part in the first round of the presidential election, while another 800,000 cast a blank or invalid ballot.
These were high abstention rates for a French election and add to uncertainty about predicting the second-round result.
A record low turn-out has been blamed for a shock result before, in 2002, when Ms Le Pen’s father Jean-Marie Le Pen defied expectations to reach the second round against Jacques Chirac.
Some of the eliminated candidates, including Ms Hidalgo and Ms Pecresse, have sought to rally support for Mr Macron in the second round by urging people to keep the far right out of power.
Low unemployment – 7.4 per cent
Mr Macron came to office with an economic reform agenda that ran into trouble when the gilets jaunes, or “yellow vest”, protest movement confronted his policies.
The Covid-19 pandemic also derailed his vision for the country.
But he credits the labour market reforms he managed to push through with reducing unemployment from 9.6 per cent to 7.4 per cent, its lowest level since 2008, and is hoping a recovering economy will help him to victory on Sunday.
Ms Le Pen says workers are being squeezed by the soaring cost of living and opposes the president’s plans to increase the pension age to 65 to reduce the costs of the welfare state.
The president hinted that this could be delayed or watered down in what was seen as an olive branch to left-wing voters.
Le Pen’s Russia problem – €9 million
In one of the most explosive moments of Wednesday’s sole TV debate, Mr Macron highlighted a €9 million ($9.72 million) loan received by Ms Le Pen’s party from a Czech-Russian bank in 2014.
He said that when Ms Le Pen dealt with the Russian leadership, “you’re talking to your banker”.
It followed a series of efforts by Mr Macron’s campaign to use Ms Le Pen’s history of Kremlin-friendly statements against her at a time when Russia is waging war on Ukraine.
Ms Le Pen, who once described Russian President Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump as her main ideological comrades, has sought to distance herself from Moscow since the war broke out and said in the debate that she supported Ukraine.
She also came under fire for her 2017 visit to Moscow to meet Mr Putin before the French presidential run-off that year.
Alexey Navalny, the imprisoned Russian opposition leader, has also voiced his support for Mr Macron’s bid for a second term. Mr Navalny urged French voters to back the centrist and alleged that Ms Le Pen was too closely linked to Russian authorities.
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
WORLD RECORD FEES FOR GOALKEEPERS
1) Kepa Arrizabalaga, Athletic Bilbao to Chelsea (£72m)
2) Alisson, Roma to Liverpool (£67m)
3) Ederson, Benfica to Manchester City (£35m)
4) Gianluigi Buffon, Parma to Juventus (£33m)
5) Angelo Peruzzi, Inter Milan to Lazio (£15.7m
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
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Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
TALE OF THE TAPE
Manny Pacquiao
Record: 59-6-2 (38 KOs)
Age: 38
Weight: 146lbs
Height: 166cm
Reach: 170cm
Jeff Horn
Record: 16-0-1 (11 KOs)
Age: 29
Weight: 146.2lbs
Height: 175cm
Reach: 173cm
MATCH INFO
Manchester City 2 (Mahrez 04', Ake 84')
Leicester City 5 (Vardy 37' pen, 54', 58' pen, Maddison 77', Tielemans 88' pen)
Man of the match: Jamie Vardy (Leicester City)
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The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylturbo
Transmission: seven-speed DSG automatic
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Price: Dh136,814
HOW TO WATCH
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MORE ON TURKEY'S SYRIA OFFENCE
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'The Woman in the House Across the Street from the Girl in the Window'
Director:Michael Lehmann
Stars:Kristen Bell
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INFO
What: DP World Tour Championship
When: November 21-24
Where: Jumeirah Golf Estates, Dubai
Tickets: www.ticketmaster.ae.
Tips for job-seekers
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David Mackenzie, founder of recruitment agency Mackenzie Jones Middle East
Important questions to consider
1. Where on the plane does my pet travel?
There are different types of travel available for pets:
- Manifest cargo
- Excess luggage in the hold
- Excess luggage in the cabin
Each option is safe. The feasibility of each option is based on the size and breed of your pet, the airline they are traveling on and country they are travelling to.
2. What is the difference between my pet traveling as manifest cargo or as excess luggage?
If traveling as manifest cargo, your pet is traveling in the front hold of the plane and can travel with or without you being on the same plane. The cost of your pets travel is based on volumetric weight, in other words, the size of their travel crate.
If traveling as excess luggage, your pet will be in the rear hold of the plane and must be traveling under the ticket of a human passenger. The cost of your pets travel is based on the actual (combined) weight of your pet in their crate.
3. What happens when my pet arrives in the country they are traveling to?
As soon as the flight arrives, your pet will be taken from the plane straight to the airport terminal.
If your pet is traveling as excess luggage, they will taken to the oversized luggage area in the arrival hall. Once you clear passport control, you will be able to collect them at the same time as your normal luggage. As you exit the airport via the ‘something to declare’ customs channel you will be asked to present your pets travel paperwork to the customs official and / or the vet on duty.
If your pet is traveling as manifest cargo, they will be taken to the Animal Reception Centre. There, their documentation will be reviewed by the staff of the ARC to ensure all is in order. At the same time, relevant customs formalities will be completed by staff based at the arriving airport.
4. How long does the travel paperwork and other travel preparations take?
This depends entirely on the location that your pet is traveling to. Your pet relocation compnay will provide you with an accurate timeline of how long the relevant preparations will take and at what point in the process the various steps must be taken.
In some cases they can get your pet ‘travel ready’ in a few days. In others it can be up to six months or more.
5. What vaccinations does my pet need to travel?
Regardless of where your pet is traveling, they will need certain vaccinations. The exact vaccinations they need are entirely dependent on the location they are traveling to. The one vaccination that is mandatory for every country your pet may travel to is a rabies vaccination.
Other vaccinations may also be necessary. These will be advised to you as relevant. In every situation, it is essential to keep your vaccinations current and to not miss a due date, even by one day. To do so could severely hinder your pets travel plans.
Source: Pawsome Pets UAE
Federer's 11 Wimbledon finals
2003 Beat Mark Philippoussis
2004 Beat Andy Roddick
2005 Beat Andy Roddick
2006 Beat Rafael Nadal
2007 Beat Rafael Nadal
2008 Lost to Rafael Nadal
2009 Beat Andy Roddick
2012 Beat Andy Murray
2014 Lost to Novak Djokovic
2015 Lost to Novak Djokovic
2017 Beat Marin Cilic
The Uefa Awards winners
Uefa Men's Player of the Year: Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool)
Uefa Women's Player of the Year: Lucy Bronze (Lyon)
Best players of the 2018/19 Uefa Champions League
Goalkeeper: Alisson (Liverpool)
Defender: Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool)
Midfielder: Frenkie de Jong (Ajax)
Forward: Lionel Messi (Barcelona)
Uefa President's Award: Eric Cantona
