7 facts about France's new 39-year-old president

France president-elect and winner of the 2017 election is Emmanuel Macron 

- He is the youngest president in the history of France at only 39 years old 

- There are some other interesting facts about the new president Emmanuel Macron beat Marine Le Pen at the presidential polls by a decisive margin to become the youngest president-elect of France. 

What are some facts to know about him? 

1. Age 
Emmanuel Macron will become the youngest president in the history of France when sworn in, as he is only 39 years old. He has a background in investment banking, and his policies are a mix of the right and the left. 



39-year-old Emmanuel Macron 


2. Socialist movement 
From 2006 through 2009, Emmanuel Macron was a member of the Socialist party. In France, the two major political parties are the center-right Republican party and the center-left Socialist party; the current president of France, François Hollande, is a member of the Socialist party. 
However, from 2009 to 2016, Macron did not associate himself with the Socialist party anymore, saying that he is an independent. 

3. Formed his own party 
When he announced his bid for presidency, Macron formed his own political movement called “En Marche!” In English, this translates as “Forward!” Macron has described this organization as being post-partisan, combining elements both of the left and the right. 

4. Obama ties 
Macron would align more closely with Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama, and indeed, Macron recently spoke with Barack Obama over the phone. A spokesperson for Obama later said that this should not be considered an official endorsement and that Macron had requested the call. Macron subsequently released footage of him speaking with Obama. 

5. European union stance 
Marine Le Pen has promised to withdraw France from the European union just as Britain did in 2016. However, Emmanuel Macron, is pro European Union. He has, however, said he wants to make some changes so that the EU can be made stronger. “I propose to restore the credibility of France in the eyes of Germany, to convince Berlin in the next six months to adopt an active investment policy and move towards greater solidarity in Europe,” Macron said.

6. Immigration policies On the topic of immigration, Emmanuel Macron is for strengthening the European Union’s external borders and pushing for additional resources at the European Border, according to Politico. 
However, he also says that security would “not be better served by closing national borders,” and he says that controls on migration should not be handled on a national level. In addition, Macron has said that France’s security policies have unfairly targeted Muslims. At a rally in October 2016, he said: “No religion is a problem in France today, if the state should be neutral, which is at the heart of secularism, we have a duty to let everybody practice their religion with dignity.” 

7. Business policy 
Emmanuel Macron, who is a former businessman himself, says he will make France more business friendly and lower corporate taxes. Specifically, Macron has promised to lower the corporate tax rate from 33 percent to 25 percent. He also wants to keep the legal work week at 35 hours but leave negotiation of real work hours to companies.