France Elections: 'Macron, Le Pen Through to 2nd Round'

Paris: Centrist Emmanuel Macron finished ahead of far-right leader Marine Le Pen on Sunday to qualify alongside her for the runoff in France's presidential election, initial projections suggested.

Macron was projected to score 23-24 percent, with Le Pen at 21.6-23 per cent, according to several polling institutes.If the first-round result is confirmed, it would put the 39-year-old pro-Europe Macron within striking distance of the presidency.

He is on course to face eurosceptic, anti-immigration Le Pen in the May 7 vote seen as vital for the future of the ailing European Union.

France began voting on Sunday under heavy security in the first round of the most unpredictable presidential election in decades, with the outcome seen as vital for the future of the beleaguered European Union.

Her ambitions have led observers to predict that a Le Pen victory could be a fatal blow for the EU, already weakened by Britain's vote to leave the bloc.

Seeking to benefit from a worldwide move away from established political parties, the former banker and economy minister formed his own movement, "En Marche" ("On the move"), that he says is "neither to the left nor to the right."

But polls show scandal-tainted conservative candidate Francois Fillon, a former prime minister, and hard-left firebrand Jean-Luc Melenchon are also in with a fighting chance of finishing among the top two candidates and reaching the all-important second round.

Hundreds of thousands of French expatriates in the US, Canada and South America cast their ballots on Saturday.'They're all disappointing'

In the wake of the policeman's killing on Thursday, 50,000 police and 7,000 soldiers have been deployed around France to protect voters.

"If it were to benefit someone, that would clearly be Marine Le Pen who has dominated this issue throughout the campaign, or Francois Fillon," said Adelaide Zulfikarpasic of the BVA polling institute.

In the aftermath of the attack, Le Pen called for France to "immediately" take back control of its borders from the EU and deport all foreigners on a terror watchlist.

US President Trump tweeted that the shooting "will have a big effect" on the election.

Hollande's five years in office have been dogged by a sluggish economy and a string of terror attacks that have cost more than 230 lives since 2015.

Fillon was the early frontrunner until his support waned after he was charged following accusations he gave his British-born wife a fictional job as his parliamentary assistant for which she was paid nearly 700,000 euros ($750,000) of public money.

Though there are four main contenders in the election, a total of 11 candidates are taking part, most polling in single digits.

The candidate for the governing Socialists, Benoit Hamon, was a distant fifth going into the final weekend.

In such a close-fought race, the quarter of French voters still undecided could play a crucial role in the outcome.