Paris (CNN) France is voting in the final act of one of the most tumultuous presidential election campaigns in the country's history.

All voting stations will close by 8 p.m. (2 p.m. ET) Sunday, and polling companies release usually reliable projections of the final result almost immediately afterward.

Whoever wins the poll -- whether it's the independent centrist Emmanuel Macron or the far-right's Marine Le Pen -- the next French president will inherit a country bitterly divided.

France is suffering from high unemployment, a stagnant economy and security worries. The government has struggled to cope with immigration and integration.

By 5 p.m. Paris time (11 a.m. ET), 65.3% of registered voters had cast their ballots. That turnout is down from the last election day in 2012, when almost 72% of registered voters had cast ballots by 5 p.m..

A high abstention rate is likely to hit Macron harder than Le Pen, analysts have said.

In the election's first round two weeks ago, voters rejected representatives of all the traditional mainstream political parties in France, with Macron and Le Pen topping a field of 11 candidates by taking 24% and 21% of the vote, respectively.

By noon, voter turnout reaches 28,23% according to France's Ministry of Interior. #presidentielles2017 pic.twitter.com/ZbWw9cMZiC — Kara Fox (@karadaniellefox) May 7, 2017

Macron's party said the hackers had mixed fake documents with authentic ones "to create confusion and misinformation." It is not clear who was behind the attack.

Le Pen has spent the past few weeks battling to extend her appeal beyond her traditional base of supporters, while Macron has been attempting to convince voters that he is not part of the political elite they rejected in the first round.

Macron, 39, has campaigned on a pro-Europe, pro-integration platform. Le Pen, 48, has suggested she would aim to take France out of the European Union, withdraw it from NATO and forge closer ties with Russia.

A woman with her dog enters a voting booth to cast her ballot in Saint Jean de Luz, France, on Sunday.

Security on voters' minds

Voters in the capital city of Paris braved heavy rains to get to polling stations. At a town hall in the city's 18th district, a group of nuns from the Benedictine Sisters of the Sacred Heart in Montmartre was among morning voters.

Nuns from the Benedictine Sisters of the Sacred Heart in Montmartre cast their votes at a polling station in the 18th district of Paris.

Pascal Bardin, 52, described the election as crucial, saying the future of Europe rested on the vote.

"Depending on how it goes, this vote could threaten global security, national stability and our values," Bardin told CNN.

JUST WATCHED French President Francois Hollande calls on France to choose the 'right road.' Replay More Videos ... MUST WATCH French President Francois Hollande calls on France to choose the 'right road.' 00:49

Macron voted in the northern city of Le Touquet, where he and his wife, Brigitte Trogneux, greeted supporters with handshakes and kisses. Le Pen cast her vote in the heartland of Henin-Beaumont, also in the country's north, with her partner, Louis Aliot.

French President Francois Hollande cast his ballot in the southwestern city of Tulle. He made the unusual decision not to run for a second term, as his approval ratings have sunk in recent years following a spate of deadly terrorist attacks.

He spoke to journalists outside the polling station, saying that France had overcome many challenges and would continue to do so under a new president.

"We must always have a road ahead. It is this road that makes us France -- we will never go backwards, we will always move forwards, looking for the right road for progress."

Hollande presided over the country during the 2015 Paris attacks , the deadliest terror attack on French soil in its modern history, in which 130 people were killed.

Photos: French vote for next president French President-elect Emmanuel Macron stands with his wife Brigitte Trogneux in front of the Pyramid at the Louvre Museum in Paris on Sunday, May 7, 2017, after the second round of the French presidential election. Macron soundly defeated far-right candidate Marine Le Pen. Hide Caption 1 of 21 Photos: French vote for next president Emmanuel Macron addresses supporters at The Louvre on May 7 after winning the French Presidential Election. Hide Caption 2 of 21 Photos: French vote for next president Supporters of French presidential candidate Emmanuel Macron celebrate outside the Louvre in Paris after Macron won the second round of the election. Hide Caption 3 of 21 Photos: French vote for next president Supporters of Macron celebrate at the Louvre Museum in Paris on May 7. Hide Caption 4 of 21 Photos: French vote for next president Marine Le Pen, candidate of the far-right Front National party, delivers a speech in Paris on May 7 after losing to Macron. Hide Caption 5 of 21 Photos: French vote for next president Le Pen supporters react to the election results in Paris on May 7. Hide Caption 6 of 21 Photos: French vote for next president A polling official counts ballots on May 7 in Quimper, France. Hide Caption 7 of 21 Photos: French vote for next president Voting officials count the votes at a polling station on the Island of Chausey, France. Hide Caption 8 of 21 Photos: French vote for next president Polling officials count the ballots on May 7, in Saint-Denis de la Reunion, on the French Indian Ocean island of La Reunion. French citizens worldwide are casting their votes during the second round of the country's presidential vote. Hide Caption 9 of 21 Photos: French vote for next president Macron waves as he leaves a polling station after casting his ballot in Le Touquet, France, on May 7. Hide Caption 10 of 21 Photos: French vote for next president Twin sisters leave a polling station in Nice, France after voting on May 7 in the second round of the French presidential election. Hide Caption 11 of 21 Photos: French vote for next president Soldiers patrol the grounds around The Louvre in Paris on May 7 where Emmanuel Macron will celebrate later should he win the election. Earlier in the day the The Louvre was cleared due to a security alert. Hide Caption 12 of 21 Photos: French vote for next president Election signs at a polling station in Rennes, France on May 7. Hide Caption 13 of 21 Photos: French vote for next president A woman enters a voting booth in Saint Jean de Luz, France, Sunday, May 7. Hide Caption 14 of 21 Photos: French vote for next president French presidential candidate Marine Le Pen moves to shakes hands with a woman at a polling station in Henin-Beaumont, France, Le Pen's home town. Hide Caption 15 of 21 Photos: French vote for next president A Femen activist protesting Marine Le Pen's National Front party is arrested by police in Henin-Beaumont, France, Sunday, May 7. Hide Caption 16 of 21 Photos: French vote for next president French presidential election candidate Emmanuel Macron leaves his home to go vote in Le Touquet, France. Hide Caption 17 of 21 Photos: French vote for next president Outgoing French President Francois Hollande looks out of a window in Tulle, France on May 7. Hide Caption 18 of 21 Photos: French vote for next president People queue at a polling station in Marseille, France. Hide Caption 19 of 21 Photos: French vote for next president A voter arrives at a polling station in Marseille, France, on Sunday, May 7. Hide Caption 20 of 21 Photos: French vote for next president A man looks at election posters of the French presidential candidates, Emmanuel Macron and Marine Le Pen, at the French consulate in Jerusalem, on May 7. French citizens worldwide are casting their votes during the second round of the country's presidential vote. Hide Caption 21 of 21

The country is still under a state of emergency following those attacks and several others. Some 12,000 extra police and soldiers are on duty in the capital for election day to secure polling stations and the candidates' headquarters, Paris police said.

There appeared to be a security alert at the Louvre in Paris in the early afternoon, as police cleared journalists from an area outside the art museum's famous glass pyramid.

Macron's camp has booked the courtyard there to hold a rally after the polls close, and hundreds of journalists are accredited to cover the event.

Paris police tried to play down the sweep, saying they were scouring the scene to check there was "nothing dangerous," in what they said was a "precaution."

Soldiers patrol the Louvre in Paris, where Emmanuel Macron will hold a rally after polls close Sunday.

Campaign gets dirty

The campaign period ahead of the final round has had its dirty moments.

Both candidates traded insults in a bad-tempered, head-to-head debate on French television on Wednesday. Macron called Le Pen a liar who sowed division and hatred, while she accused him of being soft on terrorism and said he would preside over a nation enfeebled by its powerful neighbor, Germany.

Le Pen and Macron faced each other in a bad-tempered TV debate.

Less than 24 hours after the debate, the Paris prosecutor opened a preliminary investigation after Macron filed a complaint against Le Pen following her claim during the debate that he may have an offshore account in the Bahamas.

Macron, a former investment banker, who also served as economy minister under Hollande, has struggled to connect with voters in the rural and de-industrialized areas of the country.

He was upstaged in his own hometown of Amiens, when Le Pen made a surprise visit to a Whirlpool factory at threat of closure to rally support while Macron met with union representatives in the same city.

Le Pen's camp heavily criticized Macron for his celebrations after the first round of voting, labeling him as arrogant.

Will voters abstain?

In the final polls published before campaigning ended on Friday, Macron appeared to have retained a healthy lead. But the unknown quantity is turnout: A campaign launched last week urged voters to stay at home, leave their ballot envelope empty or submit a blank piece of paper instead of a ballot slip. It is unclear if the steady voter turnout in the morning will continue through the day.

Boycott 2017 badges at a May Day rally in Paris. The Boycott 2017 campaign calls on voters to back "neither Le Pen, nor Macron.

While the first-round turnout was relatively healthy, official government figures show more people abstained in the April 23 vote than the number who voted for any single candidate -- including Macron and National Front's Le Pen.

The big challenge for Le Pen has been to broaden her appeal. At the end of last month, she announced that she had temporarily stepped down from her position as leader of the National Front. Some saw that as an attempt to distance herself from the party, regarded as toxic by many in France.

But her position in the polls has barely moved since the first round. If Le Pen is elected, it would be one of the biggest shocks in postwar French political history.