Macron gets poll boost in French presidential race
BORDEAUX/ PARIS: Embattled French presidential candidate Francois Fillon suffered a new setback Friday as his spokesman quit, while veteran conservative Alain Juppe stood ready to replace him in the race.
Meanwhile, independent centrist candidate Emmanuel Macron consolidated his status as favorite for the French presidency on Friday as pressure mounted on scandal-hit conservative rival Francois Fillon to pull out.
Juppe is ready to step in as presidential candidate if the beleaguered Fillon pulls out, his entourage said Friday as the list of deserters from Fillon’s camp grew.
Spokesman Thierry Solere posted on Twitter that he was leaving Fillon’s campaign, the latest sign that the candidate’s support is crumbling over an expenses scandal.
Pressure has been building on Fillon since the former prime minister, who turns 63 on Saturday, revealed this week that he will be charged later this month over allegations he paid his wife Penelope hundreds of thousands of euros for fake parliamentary jobs.
The 71-year-old Juppe, also an ex-premier and a one-time foreign minister, was beaten by Fillon in the conservative primary in November after beginning the contest as a clear favorite.
Juppe has kept a low profile since far- right candidate Marine Le Pen has taken the lead in opinion polls and centrist Emmanuel Macron has also benefited from Fillon’s woes.
An opinion poll published by Odoxa showed Macron coming first in the first round, pushing Le Pen into second place for the first time since the line- up of candidates became clear.
In the midst of a crisis of confidence in Fillon’s camp, the same poll showed that should the 62year- old step down and be replaced by Juppe, it would be Juppe who would win the first round, with Le Pen eliminated.
The poll came as Fillon suffered the latest in a string of resignations among his close advisers and backers, and as a source in Juppe’s entourage said the 71- year- old — who lost to Fillon in the primaries in November — was “ready to take part in the search for a solution.”
Macron presented his manifesto on Thursday and has been climbing in the polls since scandal engulfed Fillon — once the favorite to win the presidency.
Fillon this week promised to fight “to the end” despite the deepening financial scandal over his wife’s pay that could see him placed under formal investigation for misuse of public funds later this month.
He has complained of judicial and media bias that amounted to a “political assassination.” Several of his former supporters have since deserted him, saying they cannot support him given those attacks on the judiciary.
Odoxa put Macron on 27 percent in the first round on April 23 with Le Pen behind him on 25.5 percent and Fillon on 19.
In a scenario where Juppe was to stand in Fillon’s place, Odoxa put Juppe in front on 26.5, with Macron on 25 and Le Pen out of the contest on 24 percent.
Odoxa did not present a secondround scenario, but daily polls have consistently shown any candidate beating Le Pen in the May 7 second round.
Another poll by Opinionway confirmed that scenario, although it still had Le Pen ahead in the first round.There are no recent polls pitting Macron against Juppe in the second round.
Earlier on Friday a lawmaker from Fillon’s The Republicans party said a planned demonstration supporting him would go ahead on Sunday and would be an “important moment” in the presidential race.
President Francois Hollande said late on Thursday that the rally, near a central Paris square dedicated to human rights, should not go ahead because it amounted to a criticism of France’s institutions.
Since his defeat in the primary, Juppe has kept a low profile in the southwest city of Bordeaux where he is mayor.
Police raided the Fillons’ Paris residence on Thursday, adding to the pressure on him to step aside.
Solere, a key member of his team, said on Twitter Friday he was quitting.
Already gone from Fillon’s campaign are two deputy directors, the treasurer and his foreign affairs point man Bruno Le Maire.
Le Pen, campaigning on an anti- immigration and anti- EU platform, has a clear lead in polling ahead of the first round in an election influenced by the same populist themes that swept Donald Trump to power in the US and led British voters to opt to leave the EU.
Surveys currently show however that Le Pen will be beaten in the decisive runoff on May 7 by either the fast-rising Macron or the conservative candidate.