Former PM Valls Endorses Macron For French Presidency

PARIS, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 29th Mar, 2017 ) : France's former prime minister Manuel Valls endorsed the presidential bid of centrist Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday, becoming the most high-profile Socialist to back the ex-banker over the party's own nominee.

His support was seen as a mixed blessing for Macron, giving him the backing of a leading politician but weakening his claim to represent a break with the past. Macron quit the Socialist government last year to form his own movement, En Marche (On the Move), saying he wanted to shake up the political class.

Valls' nod comes less than a month before the first round of the election on April 23, in which polls show Macron and far-right leader Marine Le Pen running neck-and-neck. The former premier cited the "risks" of a Le Pen victory in confirming his support for Macron, in an interview with BFM tv.

Le Pen pounced on the defection as proof of her claim that Macron is effectively a surrogate for outgoing President Francois Hollande.