French Election 2017 Latest Update: Feminist Protests, International Voting, & Final Results In A Few Hours

The French election this Sunday has been a turning point for France, but it did not go without hiccups. Popular feminist group Femen has rallied against Marine Le Pen in Henin-beaumont, Northern France.

Around 9:10 a.m., the group has started spreading around the area with banners that says, “Marine in Power, Marianne in Despair” to boycott Le Pen, according to ABC News. The topless protesters were immediately detained thereafter. However, French unions are still planning to continue the protests in the next couple of days regardless of the election result.

France has mixed emotions about the entire election process. This will be the only election where their two major government parties, the Socialists and the Republicans, were not able to produce a candidate up until the final round since the end of the World War II.

Le Pen’s alt right propaganda has worried French voters because their administration might take a drastic turn, similar to Trump’s reign, if Le Pen wins. On the other hand, they are also worried about Emmanuel Macron’s political inexperience and business links.

According to The Sun, French voters were really divided between the two candidates. Even though there are some who did not decide to vote, the majority still decided to vote and hope for the best.

So far, Macron has had a better polling with a 23.8 percent vote poll, while Le Pen, the head of the National Party, finished second with 21.5 percent.

Even though this is only the result of the initial poll, pundits believe Macron will sweep the votes. According to The Guardian, an online data poll shows that Macron is currently the favorite.

Both candidates had a TV debate last Friday, but it did not really end up in good spirits. Le Pen was gravely criticized for being unprofessional during the debate, attacking Macron more times than she was able to defend her agenda.

Le Pen was particularly targeting Macron on the alleged email hacking, which most reports said were fake. The French election committee calls out on its citizens to be responsible in distributing this news.

“The commission calls on everyone present on internet sites and social networks – primarily the media, but also all citizens – to show responsibility and not pass on this content so as not to distort the sincerity of the ballot.”

For as long as there is no validation that the thousands of hacked emails from Macron were proven valid, the citizens were asked to be discreet, hoping to avoid the fake news catastrophe that happened during the U.S. elections.

French televisions also opted not report the hack on their programs since this may affect the current polling they have.

“If these documents contain revelations, Le Monde will of course publish them after having investigated them, respecting our journalistic and ethical rules, and without allowing ourselves to be exploited by the publishing calendar of anonymous actors.”

Le Pen and Macron voted at opposite sites of the country alongside the 47 million voters expected to come in today.

According to France24, the polls overseas have already opened for the final round of the French presidential election. There are 1.3 million French citizens living abroad who are expected to vote. There are also several changes in the voting regulations to prepare for any unexpected attacks.

Meanwhile, Le Pen tweeted that Macron’s supporters “act with violence everywhere even in… a symbolic and sacred place. No dignity.”

According to the Chicago Tribune, Macron is hitting back and is gaining credibility as he defends the leak, saying these are obtained “fraudulently.”

The polling will conclude at 8 p.m. French Timezone. The pollsters’ projections and official partial results are revealed then.

[Featured Image by Francois Mori/AP Images]