Macron wins over 80% of the French expat vote in Switzerland

French President Emmanuel Macron received four out of five votes cast by French citizens in Switzerland Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved

French President Emmanuel Macron received strong support from French voters in Switzerland in the run-off of the French presidential election. He won 81.27% of the vote cast by French citizens in French-speaking Switzerland, according to provisional results announced on Sunday evening by the French Consulate General in Geneva.

Approximately 45% of the 123,838 registered French citizens took part in the second round of the French presidential election. Macron’s rival Marine Le Pen earned 18.73% of the vote.

The results differ only slightly from the global French expat vote: Macron won 86.14% while Le Pen managed 13.86%.

Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis, who holds the rotating Swiss presidency this year, congratulated Macron on his victory via Twitter. He stressed the close link between the two countries thanks to their large expat communities. 

Toutes mes félicitations à @EmmanuelMacronExternal link pour sa réélection à la Présidence de la République française Nos pays sont étroitement liés – notamment par la plus grande communauté de Suisses et de Français de l'étranger. Je me réjouis de poursuivre notre bonne collaboration

— Ignazio Cassis (@ignaziocassis) April 24, 2022External link

Macron’s popularity in Switzerland was already evident in the first round of elections where he was well ahead with 44.13% of the vote share. Jean-Luc Mélenchon (18.86%) came in second place, followed by Éric Zemmour (8.73%), Yannick Jadot (8.25%), and Marine Le Pen (7.64%). 

A total of 107 polling booths and 1,200 volunteers were deployed to facilitate the electoral process across six French-speaking cantons of Switzerland.