One Thing to Watch in the French Election

John Ellis: “In the 2017 presidential run-off election, Marine Le Pen did very poorly in the one and only candidates’ debate. She went on to lose by a 2-1 margin. In the (multi-candidate) debates held so far this year, Ms. Le Pen has, by all accounts, ‘underperformed,’ which is consultant-speak for ‘did badly.’”

“There is one debate between now and election day (24 April). Everyone assumes Le Pen will ‘underperform.’ But what if she doesn’t? What if she does just fine? It’s an important question because the outcome of the election may hinge on the outcome of the debate.”