Pension reform becomes key to election in France

Uncertainty over proposed divisive reform of France's pension system has emerged as a key battleground between incumbent leader Emmanuel Macron and rival Marine Le Pen, as the pair go head-to-head in the second round of the country's presidential election, which takes place on April 24.

The duo, who fought out the second round five years ago with Macron winning by a margin of 66.1 percent to Le Pen's 33.9 percent, emerged as the top two candidates from the first round of voting last weekend. However, domestic and global political landscapes have changed so much since 2017 that many observers and opinion polls are predicting a much closer fight this time.

Centrist Marcon is looking to become the first incumbent since Jacques Chirac in 2002 to win the reelection. And in this year's first round, he won 27.6 percent of the vote, the highest first round score by an incumbent president since Francois Mitterrand in 1998. Far-right favorite Le Pen won 23 percent, with far-left candidate Jean-Luc Melenchon coming in a close third at 22.2 percent.

Following his elimination, Melenchon advised his supporters to give "not one vote" to Le Pen, but also stopped short of advising them to vote for Macron, repeating his stance from the 2017 election.

If his supporters do choose to abstain, it could add a significant element of unpredictability in the next contest. This year's first round vote saw 26 percent of registered voters choosing not to cast their ballots, a figure that was 4 percent up on that of 2017, and close to the record high of 28.4 percent from the 2002 election.

Public opposition to planned reform of France's generous retirement system, which allows workers to quit at the age of 62, was one of the motivations for the gilet jaunes, or Yellow vests protest movement, before the issue was put to one side because of the pandemic.

Since the first round of voting, Macron has appeared to moderate his stance, saying "I am ready to change the timeline and say we don't necessarily have to do a reform by 2030 if I feel that people are too anxious". He added that he was ready to "open the door" on changing the retirement age from its current 62 to 64, as opposed to his initial suggestion of 65.

But with so many votes now up for grabs, Le Pen dismissed Macron's suggestion as a "maneuver" and said he would revert to his initial plan if reelected.