Centrist Macron enjoys a narrow lead

France’s tumultuous presidential election battle stepped up a gear on Monday as the main candidates faced off in the first of several TV debates, gunning for every vote with just a month to go.

In France’s most unpredictable election in years, far-right National Front leader Marine Le Pen and centrist Emmanuel Macron have been running neck-and-neck for weeks, with the latest opinion poll showing him just half a percentage point ahead for the first round of voting on April 23.

The frontrunners

Monday’s debate was an unprecedented chance for French voters to compare candidates before the first round as the frontrunners shared the stage with trailing candidates Francois Fillon of the right and Benoit Hamon of the left, along with the far left Jean-Luc Melenchon. All 11 contenders will take part in another debate on April 4.

Polls currently show Mr. Fillon, the one-time favourite, crashing out in the first round behind Ms. Le Pen and Mr. Macron, following revelations of payments by Parliament to his wife and children as well as loans and lavish gifts from friends.

The election, in which several veterans have already been sent packing by voters fed up with politics as usual, could hinge on turnout.

Supporters of Mr. Macron, who styles himself as a progressive transcending France’s entrenched left-right divide, are among the most volatile while Ms. Le Pen’s are the most loyal, polls show.