Sunday, April 23, 2017

France votes amid high security – 50,000 police/7,000 soldiers are being deployed across the country

Voters are going to the polls in France to choose their next president, amid high security following a deadly attack on Paris police three days ago.

About 50,000 police and 7,000 soldiers are being deployed across the country to secure polling.

Eleven candidates are vying to be the country’s next president, with leading candidates spanning the political spectrum from far-left to far-right.

The two with the most votes will go to a run-off round in a fortnight’s time.

Polling stations in France opened at 08:00 local time (06:00 GMT), although some overseas territories began the voting on Saturday. Voting ends at 20:00, with exit polls expected quickly afterwards.

Live coverage of the French election

Four candidates are currently seen as being within reach of the presidency: the conservative François Fillon, the far-right leader Marine Le Pen, liberal centrist Emmanuel Macron and the far-left’s Jean-Luc Mélenchon.

Source: France votes for new president amid high security – BBC News


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