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France election: Emmanuel Macron defeats rival Marine Le Pen as he declares ‘I’m everyone’s president’
BRIT-BASHER Emmanuel Macron has defeated Marine Le Pen and declared: "I'm everyone's president."
Incumbent Macron, 44, won 58.8 per cent of the vote while his opponent got 41.2 per cent, exit polls showed last night.
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He will become the first French President to be re-elected in 20 years, thumping his far-right rival by 17 percentage points in Sunday's count, according to exit polls.
The French leader told thousands of jubilant supporters under the Eiffel Tower: "From now on I am no longer the candidate for a party. I’m everyone’s President!"
He held wife Brigitte's hands as Beethoven's Ode to Joy blasted out of speakers with cheers and applause by the crowd waving French flags.
His victory is still to be officially confirmed but French exit polls are almost always correct.
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Broadcasters were already declaring his victory last night— ushering in five more years of the self-appointed EU king.
Macron’s aides confirmed he would be celebrating underneath the blue and yellow EU flag, as well as the French Tricolour.
The 44-year-old vowed that "no one will be left by the wayside" under his second five-year term.
"Many of our compatriots voted for me not out of support for my ideas but to block those of the extreme right. I want to thank them and I know that I have a duty towards them in the years to come," he said.
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"We will have to be benevolent and respectful because our country is riddled with so many doubts, so many divisions.
"No one will be left by the wayside. It will be up to us to work together to achieve this unity which will enable us to live happier lives in France.
"The years to come will certainly not be quiet, but they will be historic."
Preliminary results showed Le Pen trailed Macron with 41.8 percent and quickly conceded defeat before the count was up.
Addressing a crowd of teary-eyed supporters at her hunting lodge, which turned into her party's HQ for the count, Le Pen said on Sunday: "Tonight's result is in itself an earth-shattering victory (for us).
"I fear that the five-year term that is about to begin will not break with the brutal methods of the previous one.
"In order to avoid the monopolisation of power by a few, more than ever I will pursue my commitment to France and the French people with the energy, perseverance and affection that you know me for."
Turnout was at 63.23 per cent among French voters by 5pm local time (4pm UK time) - down two percent from 2017 - the interior ministry said.
This is the lowest turn out in more than 40 years, with voter abstention at its highest level since 1969 at 28 per cent.
Boris Johnson congratulated Macron on his re-election in a Twitter message written in French and English.
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"France is one of our closest and most important allies," he wrote.
"I look forward to continuing to work together on the issues which matter most to our two countries and to the world."
Macron's foreign minster Jean-Yves Le Drian said: "The French did not want a France that turns in on itself."
Meanwhile Health Minister Olivier Veran said: "We will not spoil the victory... but the (far-right) has its higher score ever.
"There will be continuity in government policy because the president has been re-elected. But we have also heard the French people's message.
"There will be a change of method, the French people will be consulted."
Election pundits had predicted a close presidential race after Le Pen's party won 47.5 percent in the first round of voting on April 10.
Exit polls are not actual elections results.
Instead, they are said to reflect voter sentiment on the day as pollsters survey voters at stations immediately after they cast their ballot.
Brussels can breath a sigh of relief after fears a shock victory for Le Pen failed to materialise.
Experts claim the far-right Eurosceptic's election win would cement "the end of the EU as we know it".
They said Le Pen's win would have put France "on a direct collision course" with EU rules and bring the whole institution crashing down.
James Shields, Professor of French Politics at the University of Warwick, says a Le Pen victory would "herald drastic changes in terms of France's place within the EU".
He told The Sun Online: "Le Pen no longer argues overtly for French withdrawal from the EU and euro, as she did in 2017, declaring now her intent to reform the EU from within.
"But her programme, if implemented, would pose critical challenges to France’s continued membership of the EU.
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"Her proposals on Europe amount to 'Frexit' in all but name."
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Macron conceded Le Pen had increased her vote share since 2017, when he beat her with 66 percent.
He will now stay until 2027 but French Presidents can serve just two terms so is likely to retire before his 50th birthday.
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