According to the French, Emmanuel Macron won yesterday's televised duel with Marine Le Pen, his challenger in the ballot of the French presidential elections to be held on Sunday 24 April.

According to the survey by the Elabe institute for Bfm-TV, the French president was judged more convincing by 59% of the interviewees, his challenger by 39%. 2% did not speak out.

THE DEBATE - For the far-right leader it was supposed to be the revenge of 5 years ago. A three-hour face-to-face in which it was immediately understood that the roles were similar to those of 2017. Le Pen is not convincing and leaves Macron, who sometimes looks at her with an ironic smile, other times with folded arms, much of the 'initiative.

The far-right leader a little uncomfortable especially in the first quarter of an hour, gets into trouble when Macron attacks her on her "dependence on Russia".

“Once again not up to par,” headlines Liberation on the far-right leader. “Macron on the attack, Le Pen on defense”, is the title of Le Parisien.

Le Pen was trying to subvert the polls, which give Macron 56% against his 44%.

"Why do you think you are a better president for the French?" was the first question for both candidates. “I will be the president of the democratic renaissance - began Le Pen - I will also be the president of the newspaper. I will be the president of harmony among all the French, of justice, of national brotherhood, of civil peace ”. And Macron immediately attacked on ecology and on Europe: "France will be stronger if it is able to grasp the ecological question". And he promised to "make Europe stronger" if he is re-elected.

At the first skirmishes on purchasing power, her workhorse, Le Pen denounced the first uncertainties, especially when Macron attacked her: "Madame Le Pen, the word unemployment does not appear even once in your program". You reacted with the proposal of your program which envisages "giving back between 150 and 200 euros per month for each family unit".

Sparks on Ukraine: “She depends on Russian power, she applied thanks to a loan from a Russian bank. It cannot be credible if there were difficult decisions to take ”, Macron's thrust, to which Le Pen reacted by accusing the president and power in general of not having foreseen a mechanism through which candidates can obtain loans from French banks.

The clash over Europe. "There is no European people, there is no French sovereignty, I want a Europe of nations," said the far-right leader. "You don't say it, but you want to get France out of the EU," Macron urged her.

On ecology Macron accused the challenger of being "climate-skeptical", she responded by giving him a "hypocritical climate", accusing him of wanting wind turbines at sea "everywhere except Le Touquet", where the president has a home.

Clash also over security and the Islamic veil, with Le Pen reiterating his intention to ban it in public places. "He confuses religion and ideology, his proposal would risk provoking a civil war," Macron replied.

(Unioneonline / L)

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