Macron, Le Pen set to face off in final round of France election
Polls have closed in the first round of the presidential vote, and for the first time in modern French history, no major-party candidate will advance to the runoff. First projections based on partial results showed Emmanuel Macron, a former minister and leader of the centrist En Marche! party and Marine Le Pen, president of the far-right National Front through to the second and final round, which will be held on the seventh of May.
Voter turnout was higher than expected in the closely watched race that could ultimately change the future of Europe. In a race that was too close to call up to the last minute, Macron – hailed for months as the favourite to become France’s next president – was projected to get 24 percent by the pollster Harris and 23.7 percent by Elabe.
——————————————————————————————————————————————–
Trump to celebrate first one hundred days with ‘BIG’ rally in Pennsylvania
President Donald Trump says he will mark his one hundredth day in office with a “BIG” rally in Pennsylvania. Trump hits one hundred days on Saturday, the twenty-ninth of April. April twenty-ninth is also the date for the annual White House Correspondents’ Association dinner in Washington. Most presidents attend the event but Trump has said he will boycott the dinner to protest what he argues is unfavourable coverage of his administration by the news media.
There have been mixed reviews of Trump’s first one hundred days and he has received some criticism for Congress’ inability to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, among other things. In Trump’s weekly address, he painted a more optimistic picture, saying this administration has created a more secure America by removing job-killing regulations, protecting the borders and unleashing American energy.
—————————————————————————————————————-
Egypt’s Sissi visits Saudi Arabia after months of tensions
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi received a royal welcome from King Salman as he landed on Sunday in Saudi Arabia for a visit to boost ties after months of tension. The Egyptian presidency announced the visit in a statement on Friday, saying Sisi’s trip was in response to an invitation by Salman and aimed at “bolstering strategic relations between the two countries”.
It said Salman and Sisi would discuss “regional and international issues of common interest”. “The struggle against terrorism which threatens security and stability” in the region and beyond would top their agenda, it said. Ties between Cairo and Riyadh suffered after Egypt voted in favour of a Russian-drafted UN Security Council resolution on Syria that Saudi Arabia strongly opposed.
Join our twitter community :