When Macron defeated Marine Le Pen in 2017, it was hailed as a victory for liberal elites that could stem the tide of populism. Instead of a revival, Macron's establishment counterparts have been vanquished in favor of an empowered far-right and far-left.
The presidential election in France on Sunday didn't just cement a second-round rematch between Emmanuel Macron and far-right rival Marine Le Pen. It sealed the total collapse of the center-left and center-right parties that had governed France for decades.When the centrist, pro-European Macron comfortably defeated Le Pen in 2017, it was hailed as a victory for liberal elites that could stem the tide of populism sweeping across the West.
He sought to modernize French politics under the banner of a new party — La République En Marche! — that would be both economically and socially liberal, in the traditional sense of the word.
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