Le Pen makes a Whirlpool visit, ‘beats’ Macron

Amiens, April 26: French far-right presidential candidate Marine Le Pen upstaged her rival, probusiness centrist Emmanuel Macron, Wednesday by making a surprise visit to an underthreat factory as he was visiting the rustbelt town where it is based.

While Mr Macron had arranged to meet workers’ representatives from the factory without actually visiting the site, Ms Le Pen turned up unannounced at the Whirlpool appliance factory in the northern city of Amiens.

She posed for selfies with workers outside the factory, which is threatened with outsourcing to Poland.

Mr Macron was visiting Amiens after facing criticism for not taking the fight to Ms Pen following his victory in Sunday’s first round of the election. “I am on the workers’ side, here in the car park, not in restaurants in Amiens,” Ms Le Pen said, taunting her rival. “Come May 7, everyone will make their choice,” Mr Macron retorted on Twitter.

Far-right French presidential candidate Marine Le Pen is greeted by workers outside a Whirlpool home appliance factory in Amiens, France, on Wednesday — AFP