In France, the vote between Macron and Le Pen begins

France began voting in a presidential runoff on Sunday in a race between incumbent Emmanuel Macron and far-right politician Marine Le Pen.

r Macron is in pole position to win re-election in the country’s presidential runoff, but his lead over Ms Le Pen hinges on one major uncertainty: voters who may choose to stay home.

A Macron victory in that vote would make him the first French president in 20 years to win a second term.

All opinion polls of the last few days point to a victory for the 44-year-old pro-European centrist – but the lead over his nationalist rival varies widely, between six and 15 percentage points depending on the poll.

Polls are also predicting what could be a record number of people who will either cast an empty vote or not vote at all.

Polling stations opened at 8 a.m. local time on Sunday and will close at 7 p.m. in most places except for major cities, which have opted to keep polling stations open until 8 p.m.