Le Putin puppet
Fears over French poll victory by extremist Le Pen
DEEP in the picturesque rolling countryside of Normandy, the supporters of Marine Le Pen are hoping for an election shockwave.
Here in France’s far-right presidential candidate’s heartlands, elderly voters such as Denis Benoest, 72, and Grognier Huguette, 75, want to oust Emmanuel Macron from the Elysee Palace in Paris.
In his place they want a woman accused of being a Vladimir Putin puppet who is determined to deepen racial divisions.
Mr Benoest says: “Marine
Le Pen will be better for people like us. She understands our problems.
“She is against immigration and I am very happy to vote for that.”
A few minutes away, in the sleepy hamlet of SaintRiquier-en-Riviere, more than 60% voted for the right-wing hardliner.
The locals welcome her controversial anti-immigration policies, despite the absence of the foreigners she blames for falling living standards.
The daughter of rabble-rousing racist Jean-Marie, Ms Le Pen, 53, might have toned down the rhetoric a little but she is still planning a raft of crackdowns on those born outside France.
She plans to forbid Muslim women from wearing a hijab veil in public and end the family reunification of migrants.
Five years ago, Mr Macron, 44, swept into power after beating Ms Le Pen easily, with 66% of the vote. This weekend’s count is predicted to be tighter.
On Wednesday, the candidates held a TV debate, during which Mr Macron accused his rival of “being dependent on Mr Putin”. If Ms Le Pen does get into power with her National Rally party, not only will it cause ruptures in France, it would also give the Kremlin a new ally.
Ms Le Pen has long been criticised for being too close to Putin, having recognised Russia’s illegal 2014 annexation of Crimea.
Her party also took a loan from a Russian bank that same year.
In the industrial port city of Le Havre, electrician Miguel Deme, 36, whose family came to France from Senegal, admits he is worried by the prospect of a Le Pen presidency.
“She looks more professional than before. The presentation is better but the racist extremism is still there,” he says.
Council worker Charline Hue, 39, a mother-of-three, describes tomorrow’s vote as being “like a choice between the plague and cholera”.
She adds: “The situation is very depressing. I don’t want to vote for either of them. I am most afraid of Le Pen though. If she gets in it will be like a civil war in France. People will divide into clans. It will create more hatred.”
tom.parry@mirror.co.uk @ParryTom
Tomorrow’s election is like a choice between the plague and cholera
CHARLINE HUE ON VOTING FOR MACRON OR LE PEN