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thousands of voters
Casting a vote in the French election in Ireland? Here's what you need to know
Over 8,000 French citizens are entitled to cast their ballots here.
OVER 8,000 FRENCH citizens who are registered to vote in this weekend’s opening round of the country’s presidential election will have the opportunity to cast their ballots at two locations in Ireland when polls open tomorrow.
Voters are being asked to go to one of three voting stations at:
- The Embassy of France in Ireland (66 Fitzwilliam Lane, Dublin 2) where there are two voting stations
- Or to City Hall in Cork
Polling take place between 8am and 7pm Irish time.
Eleven candidates spanning the spectrum from Trotskyist left to far-right are running in this weekend’s contest.
The four favourites are far-right National Front (FN) leader Marine Le Pen, 48, centrist En Marche (On The Move) leader Emmanuel Macron, 39, conservative Republicans nominee Francois Fillon, 63, and hard left La France Insoumise (France Unbowed) leader Jean-Luc Melenchon, 65.
Three surveys – all taken in advance of this week’s Paris shooting – showed Macron having a slight edge over Le Pen with 23-25% against 22-23%.
Fillon and Melenchon are grouped together in a range of between 18% and 19.5% after a late spurt that has put them within striking distance of the frontrunners.
Projections based on partial results should come in as soon as polls close tomorrow evening.
The two top candidates will go through to a runoff election on 7 May.
The next president will be sworn in by 14 May at the latest, taking over from Socialist President Francois Hollande.
- With reporting from AFP
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