Former President Barack Obama formally endorsed the independent centrist candidate Emmanuel Macron for president of France on Thursday, saying Macron “appeals to people’s hopes and not their fears.”
Obama made the endorsement in a video that appears on Macron’s campaign website, which received more than 6.1 million views by Friday morning.
In the video, Obama says he admires Macron’s campaign:
“He has stood up for liberal values. He put forward a vision for the important role that France plays in Europe and around the world, and he is committed to a better future for the French people.”
In making the endorsement, Obama stands in opposition to Macron’s rival Marine Le Pen, a right-wing, anti-immigrant candidate whom President Donald Trump supports but has not formally endorsed.
The former president is widely popular in France. A Suffolk University poll released on May 4 found that Obama has a 90 percent approval rating in France. Trump’s approval rating among the French is just 13 percent. An ongoing petition, which has received more than 49,700 signatures, urges Obama to run for president of France.
Macron and Le Pen face off Sunday in a closely watched run-off election.
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Obama Steps Into French Politics With Endorsement Of Emmanuel Macron was originally published on newsone.com
