President Emmanuel Macron is set to face his nationalist rival Marine Le Pen in the final round of the French election in a re-run of their 2017 contest that will reverberate across Europe.
Macron got 27.6% of the vote compared with 23.4% for Le Pen, according to interior ministry figures based on 97% of registered voters counted. Snap polls taken after voting ended gave the 44-year-old president a narrow advantage heading into a runoff on April 24. Three surveys showed him leading by at least 54% to 46% while others showed a narrower lead. European stock futures dropped on polls showing a tight race.
