Centrist Macron beats right-winger Le Pen in French presidential election

French voters choose between Le Pen & Macron in presidential run-off LIVE UPDATES

“A new page of our long history is opening this evening, I want hope and confidence to be found again this evening,” Macron told AFP, after the first projections were announced.

Marine Le Pen has congratulated Macron on his victory. “The French voted for continuity and I called Monsieur Macron Macron to congratulate him on his election,” she said. 

Speaking after the polling stations closed on Sunday, Macron said that his victory was “a great honor and a great responsibility.” He promised to “protect the most fragile” and to fight against “all forms of inequality and discrimination.”

“I will defend France,” he said, adding that he will be “at the forefront” of the fight against terrorism.

Macron’s victory shows that the majority of French people wanted to unite around the “values of the republic," outgoing French President François Hollande said. “His big victory confirms that a very large majority of our fellow citizens wanted to gather around the values of the Republic and mark their attachment to the European Union,” Hollande said in a statement.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault has congratulated Macron on his victory.

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