French Centrist Bayrou Offers Alliance to Presidential Candidate Macron

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Francois Bayrou, a French centrist politician and the leader of the Democratic Movement party (MoDem), said Wednesday that after receiving many messages urging him to enter the presidential race, he decided to make a proposal to independent candidate Emmanuel Macron to form an alliance.

"I have received numerous messages encouraging me to run [for president]… Since the risk is enormous, since the French are disoriented, I have decided to make an offer of an alliance to Emmanuel Macron. Let us join efforts," Bayrou said, as quoted by Le Figaro newspaper.

Earlier in the day, an Opinionway poll showed that Macron's chances for winning the first round of the presidential election grew slightly, but he still remained neck-in-neck with center-right candidate Francois Fillon, with 22 percent of the potential votes to Fillon's 21. Far-right National Front party leader Marine Le Pen remained ahead of both with 26 percent, but was projected to lose the second round to either candidate.

The first round of the French presidential election is scheduled for April 23, while the run-off between the top two candidates of the first vote is slated for May 7.

Bayrou was a candidate in French presidential elections in 2002, 2007 and 2012.