A month ago, France’s Emmanuel Macron looked like Europe’s wartime leader, rallying the European Union to impose a series of sanctions against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine and seeing his domestic popularity soar. That appeared to make this weekend’s presidential vote an afterthought. But foreign policy rarely wins elections and that’s holding true in France. What was a 12 point gap between Macron and his closest rival, nationalist Marine Le Pen, has shrunk as she’s toured towns and villages, casting herself as the defender of the “little ones” against the “president of the rich.” Le Pen has pledged to reverse the biggest effect of the war felt by the French — a surge in the cost of living — by slashing gasoline prices and taxing big energy companies. Several candidates, including Macron, have focused on immigration, showing it also remains central for voters. There are 12 people running and the top two will go through to a runoff. Macron and Le Pen are well ahead of the rest, so attention has turned to who will be more attractive to supporters of the losing candidates and what proportion will stay home for the second round if they don’t feel the first-vote winners represent them. Macron is still ahead in runoff polls, but Le Pen is the one with a tailwind. She was quick to disavow Russian President Vladimir Putin after the invasion of Ukraine and support for her has risen steadily since. If Macron loses on April 24, that will be the end of his strongly pro-Europe policies, including for greater “strategic autonomy.” Were Le Pen to become president it would put the far-right in control of France, setting the nuclear power and permanent UN Security Council member on a nationalist, nativist path. Subscribe to our YouTube channel: https://bit.ly/2TwO8Gm Subscribe to our newest channel Quicktake Explained: https://bit.ly/3iERrup Bloomberg Quicktake brings you live global news and original shows spanning business, technology, politics and culture. Make sense of the stories changing your business and your world. To watch complete coverage on Bloomberg Quicktake 24/7, visit http://www.bloomberg.com/qt/live, or watch on Apple TV, Roku, Samsung Smart TV, Fire TV and Android TV on the Bloomberg app. Have a story to tell? Fill out this survey for a chance to have it featured on Bloomberg Quicktake: https://cor.us/surveys/27AF30 Connect with us on… YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/Bloomberg Breaking News on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/BloombergQuickTakeNews Twitter: https://twitter.com/quicktake Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/quicktake Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/quicktake