Inside Story

What does France’s new president-elect have to offer?

Emmanuel Macron was elected just a year after launching his own political movement.

Macron’s landslide win over the far-right’s Marine Le Pen has been hailed a victory of hope and optimism, over fear and reaction. A vote for globalisation, not nationalism. And a rebuke of the political establishment.

At 39, Macron will be France’s youngest president and the first leader in modern French history who doesn’t belong to a major political party.

His victory was decisive. He took 66.1 percent of the vote compared with 33.9 percent for Le Pen. But that was the National Front’s best ever showing, exposing deep divisions in the country.

During his campaign Macron promised to remake a political system that he says is failed and vacuous and with a plan to energise the economy, and reform the European Union.

His victory is seen as remarkable for someone who only formed his political movement thirteen months ago, and without any MPs in France’s legislative assembly.

So will we see a new France and what does his victory mean for Europe?

Presenter: Richelle Carey

Guests:
Renaud Girard, chief foreign correspondent for Le Figaro newspaper
Rainbow Murray, associate professor of French politics at Queen Mary University of London
Christoph Frei, associate professor of political science at the University of St. Gallen