France's presidential election race is tighter than expected. Here's what you need to know
CNN
While Emmanuel Macron is the favorite, his rival Marine Le Pen is rising in the polls, suggesting the election could be more tightly fought than when the pair went head-to-head in 2017. Here's what to know about the candidates and the issues.
An incumbent president standing for election for only the second time in his life; a candidate twice convicted of inciting racist and religious hatred polling in second place; another hard-right stalwart in third and the long-dominant left of French politics in disarray.
Then Russia invaded Ukraine.
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