Independent centrist Emmanuel Macron is the favourite to be the next French President, having come top in the first round of voting. He will face National Front leader Marine Le Pen in the run off election on 7 May 2017. If he wins at 39, he will be the youngest French head of state since Napoleon.
The incumbent president François Hollande of the Socialist Party decided not to run because of poor approval ratings. The candidate for the Socialist Party, Benoit Hamon received just 6% of the vote.
The presidential election will be followed by the for members of the National Assembly (the French parliament) on 11 and 18 June.
The full results of the first round vote were as follows:
| Candidate | Party | 1st round | |
| Votes | % | ||
| Emmanuel Macron | En Marche! | 8,528,585 | 23.86% |
| Marine Le Pen | National Front | 7,658,990 | 21.43% |
| François Fillon | The Republicans | 7,126,632 | 19.94% |
| Jean-Luc Mélenchon | La France insoumise | 7,011,856 | 19.62% |
| Benoît Hamon | Socialist Party | 2,268,838 | 6.35% |
| Nicolas Dupont-Aignan | Debout la France | 1,689,686 | 4.73% |
| Jean Lassalle | Résistons! | 433,996 | 1.21% |
| Philippe Poutou | New Anticapitalist Party | 392,454 | 1.10% |
| François Asselineau | Popular Republican Union | 329,951 | 0.92% |
| Nathalie Arthaud | Lutte Ouvrière | 231,660 | 0.65% |
| Jacques Cheminade | Solidarity and Progress | 65,076 | 0.18% |
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