French Election: Election turns four way race with Mélenchon rising

The upcoming French election has taken a new turn; it is no longer a two-way or a three-way race but a four-way race as the support for the leftist candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon surges. The support for Mr. Mélenchon, who has vowed to move out of the euro if a negotiations to reverse austerity policies breaks down, has been growing since March. The polls in February were predicting 12 percent for Mr. Mélenchon in the first round, but in March it surged to 15 percent. That same poll showed top two candidates, Emmanuel Macron and Marine Le Pen tied at 25 percent. The latest poll conducted by Ipsos-Sopra Sterna predicted that the Republican candidate and the former front-runner Francois Fillon will receive 19 percent of the votes in first round, the leftist candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon will receive 20 percent of the votes, and the top two candidates, independent candidate Emmanuel Macron and Front National Leader Marine Le Pen will receive 22 percent of the votes each.

This really adds to the uncertainty as the gap between the top four candidates is just about 3 points which suggest that the election might turn anyway now, with more than 30 percent of French still undecided. Two of the top four candidates are anti-establishment and anti-euro. The first round of the election will be held next Sunday, April 23rd.