French expats wait in long lines to cast ballot in Montreal
Emmanuel Macron, Marine Le Pen face off for France's top spot in 2nd round of voting
French expats lined up for hours in the rain in Montreal to cast a ballot in their country's pivotal presidential runoff between centrist Emmanuel Macron and far-right Marine Le Pen.
Similar to the first round of voting, there was only one polling station in the city open to French citizens eligible to vote. Of the 85,000 eligible French voters in Canada, the vast majority of them were registered to vote here.
The French Consulat promised better voting conditions this time, including separate lines for expecting mothers and voters with disabilities after the first round of voting spurred complaints.
But while the new measures helped, others say it still took too long to cast their ballot.
"They need more offices to vote," said Diane Urbain, who waited for more than two hours. "The organization is better than last time, but there's too much people."
A line has been set up for the elderly, pregnant women and families w/ small kids. One man told me he waited 5min to vote <a href="https://twitter.com/CBCMontreal">@CBCMontreal</a> <a href="https://t.co/Is2HxkjYd0">pic.twitter.com/Is2HxkjYd0</a>
—@mattdamoursIt was the last day for French citizens living outside of their homeland to cast their ballots. In France, the polls close early Sunday afternoon for what has become a divisive race between the two frontrunners.
Recent polls suggest Macron has a 24-point lead over Le Pen, with support of 62 per cent of decided voters. Le Pen has the backing of 38 per cent.
With files from Matt D'Amours, Éric Grenier and the Canadian Press