What are your thoughts on France's presidential election today?

A good sign of a post-Trumpian sea change.

@marinelife To be fair, the U.K. started taking steps backward before the US did.

I’m very happy for the French that they defeated the fascist Trumpette.

Dodged a bullet. That is all it is. It was bad enough that she got through the first round.

I’m glad we scared the hell out of them with how BAD it REALLY CAN BE if they aren’t paying attention.

I’m really glad Macron won and extremely glad Le Pen lost. But it was too close for my comfort.

Very glad for many reasons but especially since my kids live there.

Nail-biter? It was like 65% to 34%...

Liberté, Egalite, Fraternite.

Thank goodness they stood up to Fascists. I posted this on Facebook this morning in celebration: La Marseillaise.

@johnpowell Yes, quite a resounding rebuke.

@johnpowell We know that now that the polls are closed and the results are in. There was a high number of citizens that didn’t vote or left their ballot blank.

Macron did not “win” she lost because she was not wanted, vote for the least bad.
Hardly a ringing endorsement, but becoming more familiar as elections go by.

It’s a relief. The balance scales at the world-leadership level still haven’t tipped far enough in the direction of sanity, but this at least is a few more brass weights on the plus side.

@janbb If Le Pen had won, would your children be at risk of being deported?

@Pied_Pfeffer No, I don’t think so. He has a British passport and an American one and works for an American company; it is more quality of life issues that would have concerned me.

A happy ending to a critical story. Champagne for all!

Approve or disapprove, a delay towards the inevitable.

Which is what @josie?

35% of the vote for an extremist like Le Pen is not a good sign for the future. France will come under more stress with refugees and terrorists, and as it does, I’m afraid the right wing parties memberships will grow and their democracy will suffer.

hey – but look at those proportions compared to what happened here.

I would have been shocked if Le Pen had won. I’m glad she didn’t.

At least the world won’t have to deal with another Trump.

There are five factors that really bother me, no matter what country is holding an election when it comes to a fair voting process.

1.) That so many people of an older generation are voting based upon concepts from decades ago when they are no longer applicable. It’s shocking how many cannot let go of the past.

2.). That there are people who don’t vote because they feel like they are casting a “yes” for the lesser of two evils. Doesn’t that mean that they have an opinion? Why not weigh in?

3.) While checking out at a store today, I had a quick chat with the clerk. He offered up that he didn’t vote in the last US presidential election because of the “lesser of two evils” excuse. I understood his viewpoint, but if I were clever, I would have pointed out the reason I took the time to vote. It is because women fought long and hard in the US for this right. This young lad is an African-American, and his ancestors fought for the right to vote in the US.

4.). The WII-FM (What’s In It For Me?). It’s amazing how many friends and relations have stated their choice in candidates based upon what will benefit them as an individual and not what they believe to be in the best interest of their country.

5.) The young friends living in the U.K. either didn’t vote or went with what their parent(s) voted. To be fair, I did the same thing during several US presidential elections when I thought that politics was boring and one more vote wouldn’t matter. Maybe the latter is true, but there is a peace of mind once that vote is cast.

@Espiritus_Corvus @janbb

Luckily for France they don’t have an Electoral College, or Le Pen might have won! ;-o

@Pied_Pfeffer I’ve been thinking of writing a Q about what I saw on 60 Minutes tonight. Your number 4 made me think of it again. One story on the show was about a Mexican man who has been in the US many years, owns a business, employs about 20 people, is married, and has three children. His papers weren’t just right, and he has been detained, and it looks like he will be deported if he hasn’t been already. His wife voted for Trump. Why? Because of everything he was going to do for small businesses. I interpret that as she puts money in her own pocket ahead of everything. She says she guesses she didn’t read between the lines.

I don’t really understand how her husband doesn’t have permanent legal status. He’s married to an American. ICE has known about him for years, and he had to report to ICE once a year, something like that.

They interviewed other people in the town who voted for Trump who all never would have guessed someone like this man would be deported, because he wasn’t a “criminal.”

@Brian1946 It was 65 to 35.

I am happy for France and happy that they didn’t let LePen obvious joint venture with Russia win. They would’ve opened the door for Russia to rule France. Putin is trying very hard to intervene in all elections in Europe and divide other nations. Divide and conquer. Its an old strategy that still works. And Le Pen thought that cutting herself off from a racist group that she was President, one week before her elections would convince people that she was no longer a racist. Apparently France must have less racists than she thought. Or at least, less Russian lovers.
Bien joué!

I’m dealing with a very depressed 13 year old daughter. I have no time to worry about France.

you asked

Me

I’m wondering how quickly there will be an ISIS-inspired terror attack, to show Macron that a new administration doesn’t mean that the problem has gone away.

Any new terror attack will be used by Le Pen to say “I told you so”

—-there were elections in France?—-
I’m so glad Le Pen didn’t win.