French elections: Macron and Le Pen kick off presidency run-off campaigns

President Macron is nothing if not a fighter.

Encouraged by the result of the first round of elections he took his campaign to the industrial heartland of his rival Marine Le Pen today, desperately seeking working class votes which he needs to win the second round of the election in two weeks.

He will have heard one accusation above all others – that he is out of touch with ordinary France.

In the end, the future of France hinges on one question: what is greater here – fear of Le Pen, the hard right-wing nationalist or hatred of Macron, the incumbent.

Traditional parties like the Socialists or Republicans that once ruled France have almost disappeared, leaving President Macron alone and lonely in the centre facing a barrage of extremes.