The huge sigh of pan-European relief over the first round of the French election is completely unjustified. He has never been a political candidate before and is married to his former schoolteacher, 24 years his senior. Le Pen should take between 40 and 45 per cent of the vote next weekend. The final outcome of this election is not a foregone conclusion and Le Pen has risen steadily in the polls and is now over 40 per cent against Macron. Europe is not under threat from Russia; Germany and the U.K. are fairly robust, and France will recover eventually.

Source: National Post April 28, 2017 18:56 UTC