PARIS: France has reelected Emmanuel Macron for a second (5-year) term on Sunday for the next five years, reports Tabassum Saleem, Special Correspondent of NewsPakistan.TV in France (a member of President Macron Politics Party “La République en Marche” from Paris district 15th).

Pro-EU centrist candidate, 44-year-old leader of the En Marche Party Emmanuel Macron bagged 58.2% votes whereas, his opponent (far-right candidate) Rassemblement National Party’s Le Pen got 41.8% votes. Incidentally, France has seen the lowest turnout since 1969 as 28.2% voters opted not to vote.

Franco-Pakistanis supported Macron: Before the final round, of 24th April, 2022 as a campaigner of the party Tabassum Saleem met a number of Franco-Pakistanis and found out that most supported Emmanuel Macron believing that Macron could raise France to the international level and most importantly that he supports foreigners.

There were two candidates Emmanuel Macron and Marine Le Pen.

Emmanuel Macron’s Program: After five years in power, Macron’s chief pitch to voters was continuity and steady leadership at a time of crises. From rocketing inflation to Covid to the war in Ukraine, the 44-year-old was hoping his record in office would see him rewarded with a second term.

His program was a further demonstration of his “neither left, nor right” political positioning that borrows from both sides of the traditional divide in politics. From the right wing, there were promises of more tax cuts for companies, thousands of new police officers and judges, and a rise in the retirement age to 65 from 62 in order to cut the pension system’s massive debt.

“I take responsibility for telling you that yes: we need to work longer,” he said at his first campaign rally last weekend. From the left, he proposed raising the minimum level of pensions, new recruits for the health service, and a promise to make gender equality and tackling school harassment a priority.

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