Macron Grapples With a Deeply Divided France

“President Emmanuel Macron once compared the French presidency to the reign of Jupiter. Like the Roman king of gods, he spent much of his first term impervious to political opposition, issuing directives with limited debate,” the Wall Street Journal reports.

“Mr. Macron’s next five years in office will require a more conciliatory approach. The 44 year-old former investment banker knows that many people who voted to re-elect him in France’s presidential runoff on Sunday were casting votes against far-right leader Marine Le Pen, not for him. Voters, lawmakers and even the president himself say he needs to ditch his heavy-handed approach and rebuild consensus across a country that has become deeply polarized along economic and generational lines.”