France is bracing for possible ‘nightmare’ victory of Le Pen

Pollsters say she can count on the support of about one in four voters to get her past the first round of voting

What if Marine wins in May? Two weeks before the French cast their first presidential ballots, the spectre of victory for the far-right leader who promises to crack down on immigration and outlaw gay marriage sends shivers down many a spine.

Pollsters say the anti-EU firebrand can count on the unwavering support of about one Le Pen in four voters to get her past the first round of voting on April 23.

Although they also say the National Front (FN) leader cannot win in the decisive May 7 runoff whoever she faces, a great many pundits were wrong about Brexit and Donald Trump after failing to feel the populist pulse.

And with one in three voters still undecided at this late stage, pollsters would be wise to hedge their bets.

Predictions of a “nightmare” Le Pen presidency abound in bookstores and the media.

The 48-year-old candidate poses a “genuine peril”, according to Matthieu Croissandeau, editor-in-chief of the left-leaning newsweekly L’Obs, which ran a special report last month titled ‘Black Scenario of the First 100 Days’.

Dozens of actors, singers and other artists put their names to an op-ed in the Liberation daily last Sunday warning: “The National Front is on the threshold of power. We call for a bulwark against Marine Le Pen … in the name of freedom of thought and creativity.”

Reminiscent of the run-up to Trump’s election last year, many artists have said they would prefer exile to living under Le Pen. Like Americans virulently opposed to Trump, they say they are looking to Canada as a refuge.