Emmanuel Macron gets reelected as French President, defeats far-right rival Marine Le Pen

French President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday (April 24, 2022) was re-elected as he defeated his far-right rival Marine Le Pen. Macron, 44, has become the third French president who has managed to secure a second term.

His margin of victory, however, was tighter than when he first beat Le Pen in 2017. With around 97% of votes counted so far, Macron was on course for a solid 57.4% of the vote, interior ministry figures showed.

In his victory speech, he acknowledged that many had only voted for him only to keep Le Pen out and he promised to address the sense of many French that their living standards are slipping.

“Many in this country voted for me not because they support my ideas but to keep out those of the far-right. I want to thank them and know I owe them a debt in the years to come,” he said.

Le Pen, who at one stage of the campaign had trailed Macron by just a few points in opinion polls, quickly admitted defeat. But she vowed to keep up the fight with parliamentary elections in June.

“I will never abandon the French,” she told her supporters. Meanwhile, several Western leaders have congratulated Emmanuel Macron for winning the French presidential election.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz shared a photo with Macron and said, “I am happy that we will continue our good cooperation.” UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson congratulated Macron and called France “one of our closest and most important allies”.

“Congratulations to Emmanuel Macron on your re-election as President of France. France is one of our closest and most important allies. I look forward to continuing to work together on the issues which matter most to our two countries and to the world,” Johnson tweeted.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he was “looking forward to continuing our work together on the issues that matter most to people in Canada and France — from defending democracy, to fighting climate change, to creating good jobs and economic growth for the middle class”.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was also among several other world leaders who congratulated Macron on winning the French presidential election.