Le Pen could win in France

Far-right leader Marine Le Pen could win the forthcoming presidential election in France, President Francois Hollande warned yesterday, vowing to "do everything" in his power to stop it happening.

Polls suggest that Le Pen, leader of the National Front (FN), is likely to win the first round of France's election on April 23.

However, surveys also show she would then lose in the deciding second-round run-off on May 7 either to the centrist and pro-business Emmanuel Macron or conservative candidate Francois Fillon.

"There is a threat" of Le Pen winning the election, Hollande acknowledged in comments to French daily Le Monde -- part of an interview with six European papers.

"The far-right has not been so high (in the polls) for more than 30 years but France will not give in," vowed the president.

France "is aware that the vote on April 23 and May 7 will determine not only the fate of our country but also the future of the European project itself," he added.

Le Pen has vowed to ditch the euro as France's currency if elected and hold a referendum on the country's membership of the European Union.

Hollande, who has battled stubbornly high unemployment throughout his five-year term and has suffered low poll ratings, decided last year not to run for a second term.

He said it was his "last duty... to do everything to ensure that France is not convinced by such a plan" of taking the country out of the EU.

Meanwhile, former French prime minister Alain Juppe ruled out a run for the French presidency yesterday, boosting embattled rightwing party colleague Francois Fillon whose campaign has been thrown into chaos by a fake job scandal.

Juppe, 71, was the most likely candidate to replace Fillon and try to unite their deeply divided Republicans party only seven weeks from the start of the two-stage election. Polls suggest Juppe would be more popular with voters, but the centrist is considered too soft on immigration and other social issues for many of Fillon's supporters and the right flank of the party.

"I confirm for a final time that I will not be a candidate to be president of the republic," Juppe said in a downbeat statement that criticised Fillon and said France was "sick" and suffering from a "profound crisis of confidence."