French election: Boos for Macron after Le Pen upstages him

"It's no coincidence if Emmanuel Macron, the last remaining progressive candidate in this election is the priority target".

The first round of France's presidential election was conducted on April 23, 2017.

In the first round of France's presidential election, 11 candidates were in the running, but only four candidates were serious contenders.

Jean-Marie Le Pen, who repeatedly has been convicted of crimes based on anti-Semitism and racism, founded the National Front party that his daughter took over, but a feud has divided the two.

The presidential candidate had been meeting with union leaders from the Whirlpool plant in Amiens, where jobs are at risk because the production of tumble dryers is going to be moved to Poland.

Ahead of the first round that put Macron and Le Pen through to the run-off, Presitrack had Macron on 64-65 percent of the vote.

Sarkozy insisted in a Facebook post that his stance for Macron is a "choice of responsibility" and "not in any way support" for his project.

While Macron had arranged to meet Whirlpool workers' union representatives without actually visiting the plant, Le Pen turned up unannounced outside the plant and posed for selfies with workers and attacked her rival.

The report, by the Trend Micro research group, did not disclose the potential fallout of the infiltration on the campaign of Emmanuel Macron, a centrist who faces far-right leader Marine Le Pen in a May 7 runoff.

A key factor in the race is which candidate the supporters of Communist-backed Jean-Luc Melenchon, who finished in fourth place with 19.58 per cent on Sunday, will now back.

Bayrou, speaking Thursday on BFM television, said Macron's impromptu visit - his attempt to take back the initiative after Le Pen stole his thunder by popping up before him at the Whirlpool factory gates - could have been "very bad for him".

If Macron holds power, France will potentially continue to operate as a major player in European manufacturing, and there may be increased output as the possibility of France leaving the EU will no longer be hanging over them as in these pre-result times. Standing amid its workers in yellow hazard vests, she declared herself the candidate of France's workers.

One man said he recognised Mr Macron's "courage and boldness" to address them that way but criticised him for not having visited the plant before.

Earlier this week, the European Union's commissioner for Economic and Financial affairs said that the EU must do everything to make sure that Marine Le Pen gets fewer votes as possible.

Needing millions more votes to beat Macron, Le Pen has been hammering hard her claims that more French jobs would be lost overseas under the former investment banker's more economically liberal program.

It has proved hard for Mr Macron to make his pro-Europe programme appealing to the workers, who are expecting strong measures to tackle chronic unemployment.