France

Though closely watched, presidential debates have rarely made a huge different in the final round. But with so many voters undecided or tempted to abstain, it could be crucial this time.

L’incertitude continue de planer autour du débat prévu sur France 2, jeudi 20 avril, trois jours avant le premier tour de l’élection présidentielle – une date jugée trop tardive par plusieurs candidats.

Eleven candidates for the French presidency faced off in a debate Tuesday that was more lively and more chaotic than previous encounters.

About 25 percent of the 1,024 people surveyed thought Mélenchon, leader of the Untamed France movement, was the most convincing of the 11 candidates to take part, four points ahead of centrist candidate Emmanuel Macron on 21 percent.

Marine Le Pen n’est pas vaincue, mais elle a perdu une manche. Le débat entre les onze candidats à l’élection présidentielle, organisé mardi 4 avril sur BFM-TV et CNews, a tourné en sa défaveur. En une soirée, la présidente du Front national a perdu sa spécificité : elle n’a plus le monopole de la

Los más beneficiados de este debate televisivo fueron los seis candidatos menos conocidos por los franceses, quienes aprovecharon esta ocasión para denunciar a los "políticos corruptos" y a un "sistema agotado". El partido de Marine Le Pen, el Frente Nacional (FN), es blanco de varias acusaciones de

It was another good night for Jean-Luc Mélenchon, the far-left candidate, who has been gaining in popularity. This format suits his combative and spontaneous style, allowing him to outflank his opponents. He shone through, engaging with the audience, scoring points and managing to raise laughter. He

Mardi 4 avril, à 20h40, sur BFMTV et CNews, les 11 candidats à l'élection présidentielle seront interrogés pendant 3 h 30 par Ruth Elkrief et Laurence Ferrari, devant un public de 220 personnes, pour la plupart des proches des candidats.

À quelques heures de la diffusion du premier débat réunissant les onze candidats, les équipes de BFMTV règlent les derniers détails d'un dispositif en tout point inédit.

Going by his strong performance in the first round, Jean-Luc Mélenchon is expected to be one of the stars of Tuesday’s second presidential debate that will feature all 11 contenders.

With three weeks to go before the election's first round, all 11 French presidential candidates will have 17 minutes each to talk about three themes: employment, security and their preferred social model.

It was long – four hours of live prime-time television. It was historic – never before had 11 French presidential candidates assembled for a political debate. It was occasionally chaotic, ill-tempered, and rambling, but on the whole civilised and restrained.