Marine Le Pen and Macron Advance to Runoff in French Presidential Election

In France, former investment banker Emmanuel Macron and far-right politician Marine Le Pen are headed for a runoff, after the first round of voting in the French presidential elections Sunday. Macron came in first place in Sunday’s vote, with Marine Le Pen in a close second. The results were a stunning rebuke of France’s established parties, marking the first time in six decades that neither of France’s two main parties advanced a candidate to the second round. On Sunday, Marine Le Pen, who has campaigned on an openly xenophobic and racist platform, claimed the "survival of France" is at stake in the May 7 runoff.

Marine Le Pen: "We’ve made the first step which will take the French people to the Élysée Palace. This result is historic. It confers on me the immense responsibility of defending the French nation, its unity, its security, its culture, its prosperity and its independence. The French people should seize the historic opportunity opening up to them, because what’s at stake in this election is unbridled globalization, which is threatening our civilization."

Meanwhile, on Sunday, front-runner Emmanuel Macron urged voters to support him against the "threat of nationalists."

Emmanuel Macron: "In two weeks, I want to become your president, ghe president of all people of France, the president of patriots against the threat of nationalists."