French election
© Regis Duvignau / ReutersOfficials empty a ballot box at the start of counting in the first round of 2017 French presidential election, France, April 23, 2017.
Emmanuel Macron of the centrist En Marche! party leads in the first round of the presidential elections in France, projections shows. Marine Le Pen of the National Front finished the tight race second.

Macron received 23.8 percent of the votes and Le Pen 21.6 percent, according to French research firm IFOP. Another global research company, IPSOS, says the two candidates received 23.7 and 21.7 percent of the votes, respectively.

Francois Fillon of The Republicans and Jean-Luc Melenchon of La France Insoumise are also among the top four.

After the official results are announced, the top two candidates will then proceed to a run-off vote on May 7.

The figures pretty much confirm previous estimates of who the top four contenders are in the race, out of a total of 11 candidates.

Benoit Hamon of the Socialist Party, Nicolas Dupont-Aignan of Debout la France, Nathalie Arthaud of Lutte Ouvriere, Philippe Poutou of the New Anticapitalist Party, Jacques Cheminade of Solidarity and Progress, Jean Lassalle of Resistons!, and Francois Asselineau of the Popular Republican Union also initially vied for moving into Elysee Palace.

Should the line-up remain the same after official results are announced, it will mark the defeat of all the major parties in France. Based on the projections, it's the first time that no major-party candidate will advance to the presidential runoff in modern French history, AP reports.

The French Interior Ministry has started to publish the first official results of the first round of voting, mainly from its overseas territories.


Reacting to the first unofficial results of the Sunday voting, French lawmaker Marion Marechal Le Pen, who is the niece of Marine Le Pen, called the election "a historic victory for patriots."

Speaking at her HQ, Marine Le Pen herself called the result of the Sunday voting "historic." Saying that she stands for France that "protects its values and its borders," Le Pen told her supporters it's time "for a great change" in the second round, and called on all "patriots" to come out in the interests of the French nation.

Speaking to the AFP news agency, Macron said together with his supporters he is "turning a page in French political history."

France's Prime Minister Bernard Cazeneuve has called on all democrats to vote for Macron in the second round.

Emmanuel Macron
© Eric Feferberg / ReutersEmmanuel Macron (2ndL) casts his ballot in the first round of 2017 French presidential election, France, April 23, 2017.
Speaking at his campaign HQ following the voting, Les Republicains' Francois Fillon called for a vote for Macron in the second round. Saying that "extremism can bring nothing but pain," in an apparent reference to Macron's main rival, the National Front's Le Pen, Fillon said he would not abstain while "an extremist" party is approaching power.

A former investment banker who served as economics minister in President Francois Hollande's Socialist government, Emmanuel Macron has been among the most favored to win the presidency.

Described as an independent centrist, the millionaire quit Hollande's party to form his own En Marche! (Onwards!) party last year.

The 39-year-old received an apparent call of support from former US President Barack Obama earlier this month, though Obama's spokesperson said he is "not making any formal endorsement" in the race.

Marcon is pro-European union, rallying for France to stay within the Schengen zone. He aims to cut corporate taxes, reduce public spending by €60 billion (US$64.3 billion), and cut 120,000 public sector jobs.

He has spoken of reforming labor laws and getting tougher on unemployment benefit recipients who have repeatedly turned down job offers.