Macron benefited from the fact that what Le Pen was selling was not palatable to most French voters.
The 2017 French presidential elections have finally ended after a brutal, raucous campaign, filled with scandals, accusations and contentious debates. In the end, centrist Emmanuel Macron triumphed over far-right Marine Le Pen by a comfortable 65.8 percent to 34.2 percent margin. It appears that the French public is not quite ready to embrace the National Front’s radical makeover of their country and economy. Now comes the hard part—the June legislative elections and how Macron will seek to live up to his promises of creating a better France.
Why did Macron, who never had sought elective office prior, end up capturing the presidency of the European Union’s second-largest economy and one of the world’s longest-standing democracies?